Forever
by sholiver
Summary: What would happen if the vault of souls was not opened, and Eragon Defeated Galbatorix on his own. What if there where no eggs in there, and somehow Eragon was needed to bring back the Dragon Race. ExS
1. Rejoice

**Eragon: Forever**

**Rejoice**

**This is my first Fan fiction, so please be nice. Please if you do Review, criticize and tell me where to improve, as well as what's good about it. This takes place directly after the defeat of Galbatorix and Shruikan. I do not own Inheritance, although I wish I did, anyway please Review and enjoy.**

Galbatorix had been defeated, and the whole of Alagaesia was in celebration, but something wasn't quite right, In the back of his mind he could feel a sense of loneliness and longing, and knew it was coming from His Closest friend, who was more to him than he could even describe, His Dragon Saphira. He knew what the matter with her was, but decided to ask her about it later, now was a time of celebration, and it wouldn't go well with the others having an upset dragon ruin it.

He quickly snapped out of his train of thought as someone was calling his name, "Eragon, I was wondering where you'd gotten to,'t was Quite a battle eh Lad.", Orik bellowed to him. "Aye Orik, I can't quite believe it's over, but here we are.". Orik clasped him on his shoulder, sloshing mead all over as he did, "How's you and that dragon o' yours, after a battle like that you must be tired.". _I am Quite Well thank you, _Saphira replied, with a hint of sadness in her voice."I agree with Saphira, It did take it out of us though" Eragon replied. "Anyway lad, I came by to ask you to meet with Me, Arya and Nasuada in the throne room, its important".

Eragon followed Orik to the throne room, with Saphira close behind, as he realised that this was the first time he really got to see the Uru'bean for what it was. Although it had just been the scene of a war, which could be told by the blackened walls and burnt shells of houses, many of the houses left standing were quite magnificent. They were sturdy; two floor houses, built with stone ground floors, and timber on the upper floors. Many of the buildings had a significant elvin style, showing the cities earlier history; however the city had since expanded, meaning that the buildings further out had no elvin features whatsoever.

As he entered the throne room, Saphira lying behind him, they were greeted with smiles and congratulations from two of their closest friends, not including Orik. As Nasuada walked towards him, she embraced him as if they were siblings, who hadn't seen each other in years. Arya was next to greet him, and to his surprise, she also embraced him, but he knew it was nothing more than just friendly, that was until she held on for an awkward amount of time. As they pulled away, he looked her in her deep, unfathomable eyes, and saw a hint of longing for a split second, before they returned back to her regular, almost emotionless selves.

After the greetings had finished, they moved onto more serious matters, firstly concerning Murtagh and Thorn about their sudden disappearance, which remained a mystery to all five of them. Next they moved onto who should rule Alagaesia, which they all agreed should be Nasuada, as it was her who organized and essentially won the throne, even if she herself didn't directly defeat Galbatorix. After that they moved onto a less formal conversation, which finally moved onto Eragon and Saphira's future.

"Eragon, Saphira" Nasuada asked, "Although the dragon race is down to just Saphira and perhaps Thorn, I regret to ask you that we still want your help in ruling this country and..." _No, _Saphira interrupted, _all of my life so far so far has been fighting for the overthrow of Galbatorix, and now that he is no more, I wish to live a peaceful life with Eragon. _"As I was about to say, Murtagh and Thorn are still out there and may be a threat, you are our best chance if he is still a threat". Arya quickly turned to face Saphira, "I understand if you two wish to live a life of seclusion after this, but you have to understand that we all need you two, it's your duty as dragon and rider to protect Alagaesia and everyone in it". Now it was Eragons turn to argue his and Saphiras point, "Arya, Nasuada, Orik, we will always be here to protect Alagaesia, but we wish to live in peace until such a time as we are needed arises, The Riders can be no more as Saphira is the last dragon in Alagaesia, meaning there can be no more dragons". He felt bad after saying his last statement, sensing Saphiras loneliness, but he knew it would be the only way to free himself, and Saphira of the fate that had been pushed upon them. Finally Orik spoke up, "Well I for one don't blame you for wanting to live alone, and wish for you both the best, Nasuada and Arya reluctantly mumbled in agreement.

Later on that night, Saphira and Eragon were in their room, in the west wing of the castle, it was one of the few rooms in the castle which was big enough for to hold her massive size. _Saphira_ Eragons mind brushed against her own, _I know that you feel like the dragon race is going to perish, but it's not your fault, and besides, there is still thorn so there is still a chance._ She stayed silent for a couple of minutes, thinking on his words. _Little one, I thank you for your words of comfort, but I can't mate with thorn, he's a traitor, and although it was not his own fault, I can never forgive him in the role he played in the extinction of our race. No, I am the last dragon in my eyes, and that can never change now. _She felt heartbroken at just saying those words, but knew that it was true; she was about to blocked everything out of her mind until he started to comfort her. _Saphira, I know you feel alone, I would outlive any human so could never be with one, I would even outlive any dwarf, and I cannot be with an elf for they would not allow it._ He sighed, but continued on, _If I were a dragon I would happily live my days with you, alas I am also destined to live alone, there will be no more riders, I am the last._

At the last statement, they both stayed silent, until both of them slowly drifted to sleep, not knowing what the future had for her, Saphira could only dream of the life she wanted, the one person she truly wanted to be with, but never could be, Eragon. She knew that they had a strong bond, and that he loved her, but not if he loved her in the same way she loved him.

As Morning came upon them, Eragon woke from his waking dreams, he started to head out of the room he and Saphira were staying in when he heard a booming mind in his own. _Eragon Shadeslayer, Your destiny was to Galbatorix was a great one, however it is not yet complete. You have saved what is left of the dragon race, but now you must help rebuild it. _These strange words confused Eragon, _Who are you, and how can I help rebuild the dragon race. _The strange voice chuckled, and only replied, _You will learn all of that in time, but a horrible misfortune has befallen upon thorn, and that means the resurrection of the dragons rests on you. You will know what to do before the day is up._

He decide to wait until Saphira awoke to tell her of the voice, and what it said, which only confused her, and her only advice was to wait until the day was up to learn more. He could hear sadness in her voice and knew what was wrong. _Are you upset about thorn, I know you could never forgive him, but he was the last dragon other than you. _Saphira replied in a saddened tone, _Of course I am upset, now I truly am the last dragon, but as to how you can help bring my race back, I wonder if I really am the last, we should ask Glaedr._

_Hmm Eragon, I wonder what this means, I know not of any other dragons, I would just heed Saphiras words and just wait._ Was all Glaedr advised, before retreating into his grieving over Oromis. _Well Saphira, I guess we will just have to wait eh. _He said as he stroked her on her neck, making her hum. _That's what I told you to do little one, Just be patient._

As night began to fall, the strange voice boomed through his head, almost crippling him, I took him a while to recognise the voice, but this time it was stronger than before, with other voices mixed into it. _Eragon Shadeslayer, the magic blocking our minds is fading due to Galbatorix's fall, now I can tell you of your true destiny, you are to come to Vroengard, and speak yours and Saphiras names to the vault of souls, and bring Glaedr with you, he will be needed._ Before Eragon could ask any questions, the presence of the mind was gone, but he was confused as to how he knew of Solembum's prophecy, and of Glaedr for that matter. He looked to Saphira to see that she was also confused, knowing she had also been contacted by the voice. He asked Glaedr what the vault of souls was, but all he said was that it seemed important, and should go immediately.

After Eragon had told Arya, Orik and Nasuada that he was going, he decided to go to Roran to tell him that he would be leaving in the morning. He found him and Katrina sitting outside the front of their house and told them of the voice, leaving out the part about Glaedr. "So Brother, you will be leaving us again, so soon after all of this, well I wish we could spend more time with you, but I guess that will have to wait". Eragon sighed, He didn't want to leave, but the fate of the dragons was more important than his happiness right now. "Roran, I will miss you as well, but I must leave tomorrow morning, I don't know what will be happening or how long it will take, take care of yourself and your family". This time it was Katrina who spoke up, "Eragon, Please have supper with us tonight, Ismira's asleep, and we may only have tonight to see you for a long time". So as he ate with his brother and sister-in-law, they spoke late into the night, but Eragon had a feeling that this was the last time they would see each other, at least in the same way.

As Morning came, Eragon woke and saddled Saphira, placing Glaedr carefully into one of the side-pockets. They left the castle and took one last look at Uru'bean before taking off into the air astride Saphira, not knowing that fate meant he would not see this city the same again. He heard Saphira speak softly to him, _Little One, we may yet again be venturing into adventure again, and I am glad that you will be by my side whilst on it._

**Well, Tell Me What you think. I will not respond to any angry writing, only to civil responces. I have most of the story planned out, but may need some filler ideas later on. If you have any ideas Respond to the Story or PM me. Thanks for reading and any constructive Criticism will be appreciated.**


	2. Journey

**Eragon: Forever**

**Journey**

**Well this is my second chapter, and looking over my previous chapter I noticed there were exactly 2000 words weird. Anyway, TheRedReader asked about what happened to Thorn, well that will be coming up in the next 5 or 10 chapters; I have a couple different ideas. Anyway thanks to everyone who viewed my first chapter, and even more to those who Reviewed and Favourite/Followed it, it made me want to update this morning, but I had College. Well I've gone on long enough, Please enjoy.**

As they flew towards Vroengard, Eragon couldn't help but to wonder what the 'Vault of souls' was, and why he was needed to rebuild the dragon race, or even how he would. He knew that there was a third egg in Galbatorix's control, but after the entire city of Uru'bean was searched, everyone assumed it had perished in the fires and destruction. After a while his mind drifted towards Thorn, and what had happened to him, if he really was dead, and whether his half brother had suffered a similar fate.

_Stop worrying little one, I'm sure everything will be explained once we get there, I don't want you being distracted for the next couple of days, you might fall off, _She said, chuckling to herself as she banked sharply to the left, and quickly redirected to the right to try and scare him. _SAPHIRA, why did you do that, would you be happy if you dropped me. Also, I can't help but to worry, Murtagh was my brother, even if he did fight against us._ He replied, tensing his body to keep balance on Saphiras back. _Little One, I know it's hard to stop worrying, but it won't fix anything if you do._

As Saphira swooped down to rest, Eragon was amazed by how far they had flown, where they had landed was just past the spine, north of Teirm. With the Ocean to the west and the Spine to the east, any threats left in Alagaesia would have trouble sneaking up on them, let alone attacking them. _Little One, I am going hunting, I haven't had any good game for weeks and I am hungry, I should be back within a couple of hours. Try not to do get yourself into trouble. _Saphira said as she pushed off into the air, slowly lifting into the air and into the distance. Her Sapphire scale shining in a mixture of red and blue in the sunset. _I will see you in a couple of hours then, _He shouted back, as he took some food out of his pack.

"_Brisingr" _He whispered and quickly the small pile of branches burst into flame, and he placed his bowl of soup he had made over the flames. As the soup bubbled, he laid on his back, looking to the stars, thinking of Oromis when he taught him what the stars were. He wondered if the stars really where the dragons of old, who has passed in noble battles, and if Glaedr had a star, even though his mind was bound to the living world because of his Eldunari.

As he looked up all of a sudden he saw a golden bird fly across the sky, shining as bright as any of the stars, he quickly stood up and, gazing at this wondrous being as it moved at an unnatural speed. Then, in a split second, it was gone again, as if it was never there. He asked Glaedr about this being, _Eragon, This world is the home of many beings as powerful, some even more so, as the dragons. We thought they had all become extinct, but didn't know for sure. I think our beliefs have been proven wrong if what you say is true. _He thought on what Glaedr had said, wondering what could possibly rival the power of a dragon, _but ebrithil, what races could be as powerful as the dragons? _Glaedr stayed silent for a while before finally replying, _Alas Eragon, I do not know, for I was hatched after the pact binding the elves to the dragons, and only stories of these beings has been passed down, Of flaming birds, and feathered Dragons. The only beast which I have seen that could rival the strength of a dragon is the Wyvern, but what you saw was no wyvern._

She had been out hunting for just over an hour, and had already killed a small deer, which would only be a small snack for her, so she grabbed it in her front claws and continued to search for good game. As she was searching, she soon found what she was looking for, a small family of deer, she flew higher so her shadow would not spook them and quickly swooped in, grabbing a large buck in her hind claws, Snapping its neck, killing it instantly. On her way back to where Eragon has made camp, she noticed a moving star, travelling at high speeds over her. When the star was directly above her she noticed that this was no star, but in fact a flaming bird. She increased her speed towards Eragon, Fearing that this was a beast was a threat. As the camp came into view she contacted Eragon with her mind, telling her what she had seen.

_Little One, did you see that, It was a bird, On fire._ She felt His mind but was surprised by his lack of confusion. _Saphira, I know what you have seen, Glaedr tells me that this Flaming Bird is one of the beings, much like dragons, which also roamed this land. He also tells me that they were thought extinct, but apparently they're not. _She was now swooping down into the camp, her scales glittering in the light of the fire, _Little One, I'm scared, what if this being is a threat, I couldn't bare it if this beast hurt you._

He could sense the fear from her, and gently brushed his mind against hers, _Saphira, don't worry, I won't let this beast hurt either of us, it is getting late, and we need to get up early if we want to get to Vroengard before tomorrow night. _He could tell that his words soothed her slightly, but there was still a hint of fear in her voice, _I know little one, Goodnight. _He could tell that she was about to fall asleep, so quickly responded before her slumber took her, _Goodnight Saphira._

As morning came, He woke to see that Saphira was still sleeping, snoring softly, or as softly as a dragon can snore. He decided that he would go out for a stroll through the small wood they were on the edge of. As he ventured further into the woods, he saw a small lake past a clearing of trees. He pushed through the foliage and sat down on a stump besides the crystal clear pool of water. He decided to go for a quick swim, and once he had removed his armour, he slowly walked into the shallows of the lake, only to be shocked by the coldness. As he got used to the freezing temperature of the water he swam deeper, until the water was too deep to stand in. He quickly dived under the freezing water, quickly pulling his head back up, gasping for breath which the ice cold water had just taken away. After a minute, he decided to dive under again, as he did, he saw a red glimmer at the bottom of the lake. He swam the short distance to the bottom of the lake, only to be shocked by what he saw. He quickly picked it up and swam back to the shore, holding the blade by his side, knowing that its being here meant nothing good. He slowly lifted the sword up, the riders sword, the same weapon he used to destroy Durza was in his hands. Zar'roc.

He needed answers, anything to give him hope that his brother was still alive, what else could Murtagh's sword at the bottom of a lake mean, especially after what he was told about Thorn. He quickly put his armour on and headed back for camp, Zar'roc in hand. As he drew nearer to his camp, he saw Saphira was still asleep, however he woke her and told her what he had found. _Little One, calm down, I know your upset, but you can't draw to conclusions like that. _His eyes were watering, and he was on the verge of crying, but he knew that she was right. _It's just that other than Roran, Murtagh is the only family I have left, I know he was a traitor to both of our races, but that wasn't him, If he is dead I don't know what I would do. _He knelt down, covering his face with his hands, _He had changed, back to the Murtagh we knew on the way across the Hadarac Desert._ He lifted his head from his hands and screamed upwards, _Little One, I know how you feel, Thorn was the last other dragon and I want to know what happened to him, maybe if we get into the vault of souls, we may find the answers we want._ He sniffled, he knew she was right, "I just hoped we could have been like the brothers we are, after all that has happened", His voice was quiet, almost a whisper.

_Little One, We should get going, we won't be able to get there by nightfall if we don't, and I can't land in the ocean. _She was right, as always, he needed answers, and if the only way to get those answers was to get to Vroengard, then he wanted to get there as soon as he could. As he packed the camp up, and into Saphiras saddlebags, He reached his mind out to hers, _Thank you Saphira, I know how you must feel and yet you were still there for me. _She gave a low purr as he stroked her on her neck. He then quickly leaped up onto her back, almost gracefully, and she quickly took to the air.

They Travelled north so they could avoid flying directly over the turbulent winds of the ocean. As she flew, she thought upon the events of the past couple of days, the news that thorn and Murtagh may be dead, that she may truly be the last dragon. The she thought about Eragon, and how he could help rebuild her race. What was in the vault of souls which was so important, that it could help bring back one of the mightiest species that ever lived. Then a thought suddenly occurred to her, The Green egg which was under Galbatorix's control. Was that the key to the survival of the dragons, she decided to bring that point to Eragons attention. _But Saphira, that egg was never found, it must have been destroyed in collapse of the west wing of Galbatorix's castle. Even if it did survive, and was somehow hidden, I don't see how I can hatch it, I have never heard of a rider who had two dragons hatch for. _He was right, No rider other than Galbatorix ever controlled two different dragons, and even he had to twist the second's will to his own. _But I don't see any other way that my race can survive._ He was quiet for a few second before finally replying, _Well, there are many areas of magic nobody knows about, perhaps this voice knows some hidden spell or power, we will only know once we get there._

When she was far enough north, Saphira began to fly west towards Vroengard, the ancient home of the riders. As she flew over the Rough waters below, she saw many of the mighty creatures of the sea, some even larger than Glaedr once was. She decided it would be safer to fly higher up, to avoid the jaws of the sea serpents which dominated the vast span of water, even if it did mean flying through the turbulent winds often found higher up.

As they drew nearer, to the island, Eragon heard Glaedr's mind inside of his own, _Eragon, before we get too close to the island, there are certain wards you need to place on us all. This place is twisted by the magic which brought upon us the fall of the riders and many of the forsworn with it, The air here is like poison, and has cause those who have stayed here to fall ill and die. I will tell you the words you need to say, listen carefully, the ward is old, and its wording may not make sense . _So after Glaedr had told him the complicated words and the wards aksed of him had been cast, to which their meaning or effect he did not know, Eragon had one question on his mind. _Glaedr_ _ebrithil, what was it that caused so much magic that it still lasts to this day. _It took him a long time before he answered, and when he did, it obviously pained him to say it. _Eragon, you know that within a Dragon and his Rider there is much energy, That their very being is made up of a vast energy supply that even a Rider cannot access through normal means. This Magic was caused by one of our own riders sacrificing himself, causing the air here to be filled with all the magic within his body._ Glaedr showed Eragon an image if a crater caused by the explosion.

As She circled the island, looking for a place to touch down and make camp, Saphira was amazed by the size of the buildings, some which would have allowed Glaedr to fly inside with little difficulty. One thing stood out above all however, A dragon skeleton which was many times the size of Glaedr. _Saphira, Eragon, That Dragon there is Belgabad, the largest Dragon of his, and my time, He was however a wild Dragon, One of the many who came to our aid, and perished. I believe he is one of your Ancestors Saphira, One who was many millennia in age._ Saphira stared at the mighty dragon and roared in grief that many of her race perished here because of Galbatorix, a grief that she knew she shared with Glaedr, and even Eragon. She knew, however the pain they all felt was lessened due to the fact that the deaths of all of their brethren who had lost their lives here had been avenged.

As she landed in a spot she thought suitable, she heard Eragon say to her, _I hope coming here was worth it, seeing Glaedr in so much pain hurts me greatly._ Saphira could only agree with him, Glaedr was grieving over his once close friends, and had retreated back into his mind, like when Oromis died. _Yes, hopefully in the morning the we may find something out to cheer him up, Goodnight Little One. _

**Well, How was that, Good, Bad, So-so? Did I use too many themes from the book, I hated doing it, but wanted to make Vroengard as close to the book as possible, remember, in this version, they hadn't been there yet. Anyway, tell me what you think.**

**PS: I hope to get a new chapter up every 2 days at least, If I don't think I can for whatever reason I will try and tell you at the end of the previous chapter.**


	3. Prophecy

Eragon: Forever

Prophecy

**Wow, my third chapter, and the story already has 150 views, 7 followers, 3 favourites and 4 reviews per chapter. You guys are all awesome. A question brought up by is one I could answer here real quickly. He asked how Thorn helped cause the dragons extinction. Let's just say that that is just how Saphira feels for now, and I will explain that more so in a later chapter. I don't want to ramble on anymore, so here is the third chapter. Enjoy.**

After they had landed, Eragon had decided to have a look around their surroundings, leaving Saphira to rest after two hard days of flying, he was intrigued about the island which was once the home of so many Dragons and their Riders. As he walked around, he came across many beasts which he had seen before, except most, if not all had something wrong with them. Many of these creatures were oversized, or had larger than normal claws and teeth, which confused him greatly. Why had these 'Beasts' evolved he did not know and didn't expect to find the answers out himself. After a while he shrugged the thought off, and decided that he would ask Glaedr later on, for now he wanted to have a look at some of the magnificent buildings the Riders had built, all of which were built to hold Dragons in them, many the size of Glaedr, and some of them even larger.

As he drew upon a building which was far larger than any building he had ever seen, except perhaps Galbatorix's castle, he looked up at the sign above the door. It was hard to tell what it said as it was getting dark, but as he squinted at the sign; he recognized the letters of the ancient language which Oromis had taught him in Ellesméra. They read out, 'The Grand Library of the Riders', when he entered the Gigantic Structure, He was taken aback slightly by the sheer size of the place. The Library was large enough to contain the entire of Carvahall, and still have plenty of room left over. As he walked through the Mighty building, he was dismayed to find that many of the books and scrolls the riders once had, had been stolen, lost or damaged. To think that all of the knowledge that the Riders had now only resided in what Glaedr knew, as well as the odd readable scroll was a terrible burden, for he knew that once Glaedr had passed on that knowledge to him before slipping into a deep sleep, rarely to awaken, he and Saphira would be the sole possessors of the Riders Secrets.

As he looked through the Library, he came upon a scroll, which looked untouched by the effects of decay. When he picked it up to read it, he felt magic on the old tome, a strange and powerful magic. The title of the scroll read, 'The prophecy of Anurin'. As Eragon read on, he realised that the prophecy was about him, the first and last Rider of the New Order.

'_I can see it, the end of the riders, and of the Dragons. But as I gaze deeper into the future, I see a Rider and his Dragon, the last Dragon Rider. He is the only one who can prevent the end of the Dragons; He will not lead the Riders of a new order, but will bind the Races of Alagaesia in a new pact, a stronger pact. He will destroy the Usurper, and rekindle the spark of the dragon race. There is however one thing wrong with this future, he is not an elf, but a human. Nobody can know of this until the time is right, but I must make the elves allow the humans into our pact, for if we do not, the Dragons, and eventually all of the Races of Alagaesia will perish, and fall into the void. I have placed wards, meaning that this scroll will only appear once the first and last Rider of the new Order is ready. Shadeslayer, I know not your true name, but know this, your fate is far greater than any others, and your true journey has just begun. Although the journey will be tough, remember, your friends will always stand besides you. May the Stars watch over you.'_

As He read over the scroll, he could not believe what he was reading, but this prophecy must be true, for there is no other way it could know that he had slain a shade. He rolled the scroll up, and quickly ran back to the area where Saphira laid sleeping, thoughts running through his mind. He knew now that he would not only bring the dragons back, but also save all of the races of Alagaesia, it was his destiny. He did however feel powerless, as he wasn't strong enough to accomplish such feats by himself, but then he remembered something he had almost forgotten. 'When all seems lost and your power is insufficient, go to the rock of Kuthian and speak your name to the open the Vault of Souls_'. _Now everything was starting to make sense, as he put the pieces of the puzzle together, he realized that his fate had been written for him over a thousand years ago. As he thought on what he had discovered, he couldn't help but think that he would have a bright future, yes he had a great journey ahead of him, but that didn't matter when he had his friends who would stand beside him. As he slowly drifted to sleep, he knew what he must do. He and Saphira had to speak their names to the rock of Kuthian, and enter the vault of souls.

As Morning came, Saphira awoke to see Eragon already up, so deep in thought he didn't seem to notice her until she spoke to him, _Good Morning Little One._ He jumped, obviously startled by her sudden greeting, only to reply, _That It is Saphira, _in a strangely cheerful tone. _You seem awfully happy this morning, what did you do last night whilst I was asleep. _He sighed, but replied simply, _I realised my destiny, and that I will always have you besides me. _As he said those words to her, she didn't know what to think, _Care to explain Little One. _So as Eragon explained to her what had happened, she listened intently, amazed at what he had discovered, and when he finally pulled out the scroll, she could smell its magic.

Once he had finished, she decided that it would be wise to ask Glaedr about this prophecy, and what they should do about it. _Eragon, Saphira, Anurin was the Rider who persuaded the Elvin Queen to allow Humans into the pact between Dragons and Riders. Many wondered why he made this choice, but that information was passed from each Lead Rider to the next. Now I know why he made that choice, so that you would be here, today, and that a thousand year old prophecy is unfolding right now. _As Saphira pondered on what this meant, a question suddenly popped into her mind, _Glaedr ebrithil, was this information told to the Lead rider's dragons; did any of them survive as Eldunari? _She waited as the once mighty dragon thought for a moment, _To your first question, Yes, the lead Riders Dragon knew of this reason, however it is thought that Galbatorix either Twisted the minds, or destroyed all of the Eldunari._

Eragon decided that they should look for the Rock of Kuthian, but when the asked Glaedr of it, he only said that he knew it was important, but did not know anything else. As they circled the island for a few hours, searching for something that could be the Rock of Kuthian, they saw a strange rock formation and decided to have a look at it. As they drew nearer, he saw markings which were unmistakably letters from the ancient language. _Saphira that has to be it, there's no other rock like it._ At that he heard a low hum resonate from deep within her throat, _Ok Little One, as long as you are sure. _

As Saphira landed a few feet away from the huge, engraved rock, He knew that this had to be the place, he could sense a magic similar to that on the scroll, and knew this Rock was created by Anurin. He Jumped off of Saphira, dropped his small bag, which contained the scroll, and a few other items to take some of the weight off of Saphira, and ran up to the Giant rock. Saphira came up close behind him, _Are you ready Little One. _He didn't even wait a second before quickly responding,_ You Know I am, well here it goes. _At that, Saphira both reached out to the Rock with their names speaking their names, to no avail. Surprised that nothing happened, He decided to say his name aloud, "Eragon Shadeslayer", and still nothing happened.

He turned to walk back, when he heard the mighty voice in his head, the same one that called him here. _Eragon Shadeslayer, you need to use the key, a key bound to the Rock of Kuthian by magic. A key meant only for you. _It was then that Eragon realised what he needed in order to enter the Vault of souls. Quickly he ran back to the bag he had left on the floor, and picked up the scroll, and could feel the magic more intensely, knowing it was because of its close proximity to the rock. He held the scroll up and opened it, and saw new writing appear below that which was there before. Knowing that this was his true name, he shuddered, knowing that anyone who read it could bend him to their will. As Saphira drew up behind him, he told her about what was written on the scroll, only to be shocked when she said, _Little One, All I see is what was written there before._

Now knowing that it was his true name needed to open the vault of souls, Information he now possessed, he told Saphira that she too would need to know her own true name. He was shocked when she told him that she already knew it, _Why didn't you tell me this, I thought you trusted me. _He could feel regret coming from her as he explained, _Little One, long before I even discovered my true name, Brom told me that I should tell nobody what it was until Galbatorix was no more, not even you, for if you ever were captured by him, he could take it from your mind and control both of us using it. _He understood, forgiving her for keeping this information from him.

_Well, now is the time for us to discover our destiny_, He told Saphira through their bond, Knowing that they were about to reveal information which could be used against them if this was an elaborate trap. But he knew, deep in his heart that this was no trap, he couldn't explain it but he trusted in the Voice that brought him here, and in the Prophecy from a thousand years ago. He and Saphira linked minds, so they could hear everything the other said, and reached their combined mind out to the Rock of Kuthian, and slowly began to say their true names. At first nothing happened, but all of a sudden, they felt a shift in the ground beneath them. As the ground around them began to crack, Eragon knew that the beginning of an all new journey was about to begin.

**Well there it was, Chapter 3. I wanted to keep the whole part were they needed to speak their true names to the Rock of Kuthian in there, Mainly because of Solembum's advice. Also what did you think about the Prophecy written by Anurin, It just came to me as I was writing it, but it opens the story up to a whole load of possibilities. I also want to thank my reviewers for some of the ideas; I will definitely put them in here somewhere. Please review, and if you do have any ideas or questions, please feel free to ask. **


	4. Eldunari

Eragon: Forever

Eldunari

**Ok, I didn't update yesterday because I was nominated for 3 awards at school, unfortunately I didn't win any, only a certificate for being nominated. Ah well, here is my 4****th**** chapter, I'm going to change how I write, starting new paragraphs whenever there is a new speaker. Also going to add more dialogue and description, so expect my chapters to be longer, starting with this one. Thanks to my Reviewers as always for some good tips, and enjoy this next chapter.**

As the cracks around them grew larger, Eragon was teaming with anticipation as to what the vault of souls was going to contain now that they were finally here. He watched as the cracks extended out to meet each other, forming larger splits in the ground. The cracks continued to grow until they all met, forming a square on the ground, encircling him, Saphira and Glaedr. They all waited in silence, for what felt like hours before finally, THUD. The ground suddenly gave in, as the crack extended towards the mountain which lay not far before them, which had gone unnoticed until now. As the separation in the ground hit the rock face, it extended up, and slowly the two halves moved apart, revealing a long tunnel, much like the ones found in Farthen Dur. At the end of the tunnel, he saw a faint, ominous light, and watched as it changed colour, from deep shades of red, to bright shades of green, and also showing a sapphire blue exactly like Saphiras before blending into the next colour.

_Well Little One, we should get going, _Saphiras mind spoke inside of his. He could feel the same awe coming from her which he himself, and he was sure even Glaedr felt.

_Aye... We should, _Not quite able to concentrate on his words, as side by side he and Saphira moved towards the entrance to the newly found tunnel. As he looked up at the tunnel he now saw glyphs and writings in the ancient language, etched into the cave wall itself, but enchanted to glow a bright white. Many of the words were wards to keep the tunnel hidden, or to prevent the cave from falling in on itself. This did however confuse him as all of these wards would need a huge energy source, one far greater than the nearby plants and wildlife. After reading many of the spells woven into the tunnel, did he finally realize that the walls of the tunnel where perfectly smooth. Much smoother than the walls the dwarves accomplished in their tunnels, which was far superior to the other races anyway. He touched the wall with his marked palm, and could feel a powerful magic within them, making the stone feel warm.

After a minute of admiring the massive tunnel, did they finally decide to press on further into the cave, slowly walking towards the huge chamber at the end of the tunnel. They noticed more and more wards and glyphs cluttering the walls as they went further into the cave, every word of it was in lines. Finally as they reached the cavern, they were amazed at the huge crystal in the centre, which reached all the way up to the roof of the cave two hundred feet above them. They realized that this was the source of the eerie light they had seen earlier on. As he looked around he saw many more crystals, all spherical and varying in size and colour. It was then that he realised what they all were, these were not just mere crystals, but Eldunari of perhaps as many as seventy Dragons who had once lived. He was amazed to see that some of the Eldunari were many times bigger than Glaedr's, however most of them were a lot smaller, obviously belonging to younger dragons.

_Eragon Shadeslayer, Saphira_ _Bjartskular, I am Umaroth, once the Dragon of Vrael , we have been waiting many years for you, for we have know, long before you were even born that you would both be here today, to bring back our once mighty race. _Eragon tensed as the deep voice penetrated his mind, he knew he would be defenseless if it was an attacker. Umaroth paused for a few seconds, allowing them to take in the information before continuing._ I know that this may not make sense to either of you, considering that you are the last living Dragon. And that you Eragon are a Human, so therefore could not bring back the race. That is you, and for many years, we were mistaken. However, during these decades we have discovered many of the secrets in the use of magic, now granting us the ability to channel magic at will through the vault of souls. We have also discovered new uses of magic, some of which can alter someone in mind body and soul. This, Eragon Shadeslayer we intend to use on you, granting you the ability to become the Father of a new era of Dragons. _

Eragon stood silent for a while, contemplating what it would mean if he was to become a dragon, what he would be leaving behind as well as what he would gain from becoming a Dragon._ Does it have to be me who becomes a dragon, couldn't it be anyone else._

_No Eragon, for it the enchantment can only work on a soul which is already part dragon. The only human souls which are as such are those of Riders, it is caused by the bond they share with their Dragon. The only living person like that is you._

He stood there for what must have been hours thoughts racing through his head, before finally he heard a voice in his head, suddenly realizing it was Saphira.

_Eragon, you do not have to do this for the Dragon race, or for me, and I know I have never told you this, but I love you more than a dragoness should love her rider. When I said I could not mate with Thorn, it was not because he was a traitor, I know he did all he did against his will, and regretted every bit of it. No, that was not the reason, but my heart already belonged to another, it already belonged to you. And although I would be overjoyed if you did become a Dragon, I would love you the same if you decided to stay as you are, even if you didn't feel the same for me. _He felt loneliness in the way she said that, a loneliness which lurked in everything she said, but also a small hint of hope.

After she said her confession, feeling like an idiot for not noticing how she felt. It was then when suddenly a longing hidden deep inside him, shrouded far within his subconscious, revealed itself. It was a deep love he felt for Saphira, not a love caused by lust, but caused by their mental bond, knowing that the only person he felt that way about was her. He loved Arya, true, but that love was overpowered by his sudden realization of his love for Saphira. Now Eragon had one Question left for Umaroth, although he had already made up his mind. _Umaroth Elda, I know that you told me of a terrible fate suffered by Thorn, but what has happened to him and his rider? Please I am Murtagh's Brother, I need to know. _

Umaroth spoke slowly to Eragon, speaking with a sense of regret, a regret so deep it could be only be caused by the death of someone important. _Eragon Shadeslayer, I am sorry that this is not otherwise, but what I tell you is the truth. Thorn and Murtagh were killed by a Phoenix, a race as ancient and powerful as our own. We Eldunari had been tracking Thorn after he hatched, believing he was to be the Dragon to help restart our race with Saphira, and in turn Murtagh. After the fall of Galbatorix, they were both weak, which is why we believe the Phoenix decided to attack them then. As we felt Thorns life be extinguished, we knew that we had to save Murtagh, as he was a rider, one pure of heart, but twisted by Galbatorix. Unfortunately there was nothing we could do, as we had never come into contact with him, so could not transport him, the only thing we could transport was his Riders Blade. Zar'roc was an evil blade, used to cut many of us down, but had been redeemed by you Eragon when you slew Durza. That is why it appeared of you that day in the spine; take that blade so it can be a relic in the city of Uru'bean, so all can remember the Riders. _

As He stood there, silent, not knowing what to think now that his fears of Murtagh's death had been confirmed. He did however feel at peace, now knowing that his brother had died besides his dragon Thorn, that he could avenge Murtagh by slaying the Phoenix. As he slowly processed the information, he finally gave his response to Umaroth. _Umaroth, I am ready to become a Dragon, I know this is my destiny and I will gladly fulfill it, please give me a moment to speak to Saphira. _He then closed off his mind to Umaroth, and turned to look at his Dragon. _Saphira, I did not realize this until now, but since you hatched for me, I have loved you. I know I loved Arya for over a year, and still do, but the love I now feel for you is greater than any emotion I have ever felt. I would be honored to start the Dragon Race, but I would only want to start it with you._

_Eragon, I am happy beyond what I can describe at your decision, and am ecstatic that you do it out of love for me. _She paused for a second, _I Love you and will from now until the day we die. _

At that Eragon focused on the large white Eldunari which was Umaroth, and opened his mind towards the once mighty dragon. _I am ready; tell me what I must do for this process to work._

_Eragon, first we want to thank you for defeating Galbatorix, _At that he heard the voices of all of the Eldunari in his head, an overwhelming multitude of minds bombarding his own. It was suddenly cut off when Glaedr reached his own mind out to shield Eragons. Umaroth then spoke to him on his own again, _I apologize for that, I did not expect for the others to show their appreciation all at once, this was why only I have spoken to you so far. I also want to thank you personally for succeeding were my Rider once failed._

_Now, for this transformation to work, it will take many hours, the process will change your body first, then your mind, finally followed by soul. The Process will be painful but you are needed to be conscious for the magic to channel properly. First you must touch your gedwëy__ ignasia to the Vault of Souls in the Centre of the Chamber, and the process of changing your body can begin. _

As he touched his marked palm to the Large Crystal, he felt a massive surge of power pass through him as the Eldunari all focused their energy into the Crystal Pillar. He found that he could not move his arm away from the Vault of Souls, or any of his body for that matter. Suddenly he felt himself begin to grow, slowly at first, but quickly began to speed up. Within minutes, his clothes began to rip, and his armor suddenly bent, and gave way to his rapidly growing body. After a couple more minutes, all of his clothes had torn off, and he stood naked as the process changing his body continued.

After half an hour he was the size of Saphira, but continued to grow for another quarter of an hour before finally stopping. Although he still looked human, he was the size of a Dragon, a few feet larger than Saphira. Now that he was an appropriate size, he felt an unbearable pain underneath his skin, stretching all over his body, however was still unable to move from the position he started in. All of a sudden, small, midnight blue dots appeared all over his body, which started to grow in size and protrude from his skin. He then realized that what these where were scales, Scales the color of the night sky, a dark royal blue. These scales took another twenty minutes to form all over his body, with a flab between his legs to cover him up.

After his scales had formed, his body began to change shape; he bent over onto all fours, keeping his marked palm on the Glowing Crystal. He noticed his hands had begun to change into the shape of Dragon claws, and could feel a similar process happen on his feet. This pain was far worse as the bones in his hand snapped and re joint, losing his smallest finger, as his thumb moved up his palm. Once the hands had become the right shape, black claws began to emerge from the ends of his fingers. His claws were a similar color to the black of Shruikan's scales, however blended into a dull white at the ends of these talons.

The next part of his body to change was his spine, which extended backwards to create a tail, which felt strange as it was like an extra limb. The Process was not painful as he expected, but instead tickled as the bones in his spine rubbed over each other as they grew outwards to make a ridge down his back. He also felt as the muscles down his tail and in his back formed, allowing him to move his tail side to side. Once the tail was formed, the spikes began to push through his skin as they grew, each spike being between a few inches in length to the longest being over two feet long, and all of them were the same color as his claws, black fading into white.

He tensed in pain as his legs and arms began to change shape, bones snapping and re-arranging themselves to allow for the extra joints required by a dragon. His Legs formed into Dragons Hind legs first as they were more similar, however his arms took much longer to form. Once his bones had adjusted, his muscles in his new Dragon legs began to grow, allowing for the power needed to take off into flight. By now Eragon had been in the Transformation of his body for over 4 hours, yet he still had a human shaped head, and still lacked wings.

Slowly his skull began to stretch into a more elongated version of itself, with his nose disappearing into his face, leaving only nostrils as his snout formed. Then his head widened and became more triangular and rigid, with contours forming the sides of his snout. Out of the top of his head, horns began to slowly form, a similar shade to his claws and spikes, however lacked the white coloring the ends. The final adjustments to his face were happening, such as his ears disappearing into just holes, his teeth morphing into the deadly blades a dragon's mouth wielded, and his eyes changing from brown into a blue slightly brighter than his scales. The very last change to Eragons Head was spikes appearing through his leathery skin covering his face.

At last the Transformation of his body was coming to an end, his wings, perhaps the most important part of a dragon began to sprout out of his back. He felt the bones in the wings form, stretching out until he had a wingspan a few feet longer than Saphiras, however without the membrane stretching across his wings which would allow him to fly. Slowly the leathery skin covering the bone and muscle on his wings frame began to stretch outwards, joining itself together to form the membrane, a pale, almost transparent version of the skin covering his face.

As the final adjustments to his body happened, such as his tongue and some of his internal organs formed, allowing him to breathe fire, he finally heard Umaroth in his mind. _Eragon Shadeslayer, the process changing your body is now complete, and we must change your mind and soul. Although your soul was changed for the most part as we changed your body, we must give you the instinctual knowledge on the Dragons. Now you can rest, as you need the energy to go through this change._

As his soul was being changed by the Eldunari, he drifted into a light sleep in his new body, dreaming of flying with Saphira, except this time besides her rather than astride her. It felt wondrous to be flying this high above the ground without needing to ride on Saphiras back; it was as if his wildest dreams had come true, dreams he didn't know he even had. In his dream he and Saphira flew for ages, hunting, diving, and doing tricks until slowly he awoke. As he awoke, he felt a familiar presence in his mind. Saphira.

_Eragon, are you awake, is it finished, how does it feel_

**Well what do you think; well that was the transformation in detail. Please if you enjoyed reading my story so far, please review. Also, how did it compare to my other chapters, i wanted it to be a chapter more on talking more than action. Thanks for reading.**

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	5. Learning to Walk

Eragon: Forever

Learning to Walk

**Ok, so in the last chapter I missed out parts of a dragon by accident. Nothing big, but someone has said about the neck being forgotten, but I have decided to leave it as it is, we all know how dragons look, and I don't want to screw it up. So you can perhaps tell what this chapter is about, so without further a due here it is, enjoy.**

_Saphira, is that you. It feels different, amazing but different. Is this what being a dragon feels like? _ He swung his head around to inspect his body, but forgot that his neck was much longer than before and slammed his face into a nearby boulder.

Saphira sighed as she watched him try to gain control over his body, as she replied, _Yes Eragon, this is how it feels to be a Dragon. You will have to get used to your new body before you hurt yourself, I don't know what it's like being human, but I know enough to know how different we Dragons are._

As he was slowly adapting to his new body, Umaroth boomed through his mind, _Eragon Shadeslayer, we thank you for all you have done for our race, and what deeds you shall accomplish in the future. Saphira can teach you what you need to know as a Dragon, as for us we need to rest. The spell has cost all of us most of our energy, and even speaking is becoming difficult. Goodbye Eragon, we shall meet again._

As the voice trailed off, and he felt the mighty Eldunari fall into a slumber, he and Saphira were contacted by Glaedr, who until now had stayed relatively quiet. _Eragon, I shall remain here with the other Eldunari, for with the vault of souls, I am able to contact you wherever you may be. Saphira, I shall also be watching over you, as I know you will have happy times in the future, however you shall also be faced with many challenges. It has been an Honour to have you both as my students, Thank you for bringing hope back into my heart._

As one both he and Saphira replied, _Glaedr ebrithil, Thank you for everything you have taught us, and at that they turned to leave._

As they left, Eragon couldn't quite get the hang of walking without tripping over his wings, but he continued on like that until the end of the tunnel. As they drew closer to the light of the outside world, he had one question he was dying to ask, _So Saphira, how do I look?_

She thought for a couple of seconds before replying, _Eragon, you look exactly how I imagined you to look, except perhaps a bit larger._

Unhappy with her answer, he rephrased the question so she had to answer his question properly, _Saphira, you know what I mean, do I look good, for a Dragon? And this time I want a proper answer._

_Eragon, _She sighed, _I'm sure you already know the answer to that. Yes I think you are a very attractive Dragon, as I am sure you the same about me. _She said that last part in a mocking tone, but he knew it was true, he thought that Saphira was beautiful before he was a Dragon, but now she we even more so.

_Yes Saphira, I do think you are exceedingly beautiful. _He said, as they finally reached the Rock of Kuthian, were Saphira finally stretched out like a cat would, letting out a low growl before finally settling down to rest. Before she got comfortable, Eragon quickly reached his mind out to hers, _Erm... Can you help me to, well move my own body correctly, I am getting tired of tripping over my wings and tail._

_But Eragon, It is quite funny to watch; you look like an oversized hatchling the way you walk around. _He gave a deep growl at that comment, _Ok then, but you best learn quickly, it's late and I want to get some rest before morning is upon us._

He watched as she quickly leaped up into the air and glided the short distance between them. _Thank You Saphira, I appreciate the help. _

_First thing first is to tuck your wings into your sides like mine are, here I'll help with this side and try to do the same with your other wing. _Suddenly he felt her snout reach under his left wing and lift it up, but as she pushed it in, he couldn't help but convulse. _Eragon stop squirming, you are making this just more difficult._

_I'm sorry, but when you do that it's really ticklish. _As she pushed his wingso it was right against his side, here snout brushed against his side, making him shiver slightly at her touch.

_Ok Eragon it's your turn, now you know what muscles to use, and what they feel like it shouldn't be too difficult. _She walked around to his other side to see if he was doing it correctly. Slowly he lifted his wing off the ground, holding it outstretched for a few seconds before finally pulling the wing in slightly. Try as he might however, he just couldn't pull his wing to rest against his side, but instead a whole foot and a half away. All of a sudden, he felt something touch the end of his wing, and as it did, it suddenly contracted the rest of the way, as well as him falling onto his side. He felt Saphira falling on top of him realising that it was her who had touched his wing, causing him to fall. When She fell on him, they rolled so he was on his back, with Saphira pinning him down.

Slowly she reached down and touched her snout to his, as she did; he blushed and was glad his scales hid it. Quickly he scrambled out from underneath her, feeling awkward as he knew that she had fallen on him on purpose. _Come on Eragon, I was only playing; it's just a bit of fun._

_Saphira, I've only just become a Dragon and don't even know how to walk properly and you decide that you want to play, and since when have you ever been in a playful mood?_

_Eragon, I've never had any other Dragons my age to play with, and now I have you to play with, A Male Dragon my age exactly. Also the fact that you can't even defend yourself properly makes it more fun. _The way she said that last part made him know that he needed a way out of this before she pounced on him.

_Ok Saphira, I have a deal for you. If you show me how to be a proper dragon, I will play with you whenever you want. But first you have to teach me how to walk. _She Hummed at that, and he knew he would regret saying he would play with her whenever she wanted, but knew it was the only way.

_Fine Eragon, the main secret to walking as a Dragon is the way you swing your tail slowly to keep your balance. You seem to be doing the rest of the moving well enough, but your tail just seems to move randomly._

After an hour of Saphiras tutorage, he could finally walk without falling over all of the time. He was tired from the day, so finally decided to lie down to rest, and watched as Saphira walked over to him and flopped down next to him. To his surprise, he felt Saphiras wing drape over him, and gave an involuntary hum to show her his how he felt. _You had best be ready to play in the morning, remember, you promised to play whenever I like._

_Don't worry Saphira, I promise I will do what it takes to make you happy. _Slowly he started to fall to sleep, lulled to sleep by Saphiras slow breaths. That night he dreamt of the life he would have with Saphira, the Hatchlings they would have, their nest, and of course the happiness he will have with her.

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As Morning came, he woke to a sleeping Saphira, but decided to stay besides her not wanting to wake her. As his senses started to wake up, his could feel something wrapped around his tail, not knowing what it could be he looked back, only to notice that Saphira had wrapped her tail around his own. He blushed at the intimate position he and Saphira were in, considering that only yesterday he was a human. For the next hour, he watched Saphira, admiring her beauty, and realising just how lucky he was. He watched the slow rises and falls in her breath, and knew she was about to wake when her breathing grew faster. _Good Morning Saphira, How are you today._

_Good thank you Eragon, I had a wonderful dream last night. You and I were just flying, side by side. _He was glad that she was happy; wanting to share his own dream with her, but felt it might be a bit too fast to be talking about having children. _Remember Eragon, today you promised that we would play together. _And at that she quickly rolled him over on his back and bit his neck playfully, something that made him growl due to how it tickled.

As he struggled to get free from Saphiras jaws he told her. _Hey, that's no fair, you took me by surprise, _But instead of getting off, she only bit harder, not enough to hurt him, _Stop it, that tickles. _He tried many futile attempts to get her off, using his claws to try and push her, but eventually he gave up, knowing he had been defeated. After a few more seconds, she finally released her grip on his neck.

_Come on Eragon, You can do better than that; I beat you without even trying. _But as she said that, Eragon had pushed her onto her back, and this time was on top of her, pinning her legs down with his greater weight.

_You were saying_, He said with a hint of amusement in his voice and a huge toothy grin on his face. His smirk was soon wiped off of his face when She somehow managed to flip them over and pin him under her, once again. This time Eragon was determined to win, and put all of his strength into his hind legs, and pushed her off of him after a long struggle.

_Much better this time, maybe I underestimated you 'Little One'._ She dove at him, pushing him onto his back, and they rolled over the ground together until Eragon was on top once again. He was enjoying playing with Saphira; it was something he rarely got to do with anyone since the war, let alone a Dragon who only yesterday could crush him easily.

_Well Saphira, I guess that I have won this time, I can't see any way for you to get me off, maybe now I should call you 'Little One'. _However, just as he said that, he felt Saphira reach her head up to his and nuzzle against his neck, making him blush and pull away from her 'Dragon kisses'. He pulled off of her, and stalked away to sit and look out to the ocean surrounding the ancient home of the Riders. Knowing what her advances on him meant, he decided to put off playing with her, for now at least.

Saphira walked up to him and sat beside him, _Eragon, I am sorry for my behaviour, I just can't help myself. For most of my life I never thought I would find another Dragon my age and now that I have, I just don't know how to act._

He stayed silent for a few minutes, Gazing out over the rapid waves, thinking of all the things he had left behind by becoming a Dragon. He could never live his life the same as it was before the war, couldn't be an uncle to Roran's daughter. He pushed all of them thoughts aside, knowing that he was, someday going to be the Father to the Dragon race. Slowly he turned to Saphira, and looked deep into her Sapphire eyes. _Saphira, I do want to be with you, someday, but for now I am still getting used to being a Dragon. I know you have waited all of your life to find a mate; I could sense the feeling of loneliness which followed you, but for now you will have to be patient._

_Eragon, I understand how you feel, I know if I had become a human instead, I wouldn't be ready for a relationship straight away. I know you need time, and I will wait for however long it takes for you to be ready._

Both of them stayed silent, staring out over the ocean, watching as it seemed to rise and fall with the rolling of the waves. _Eragon, _Saphira finally said, seeming unsure of what to say, _I should... I should probably show you how to fly later on._

**Well there it was, Eragon is finally a Dragon (end of last chapter really) and Saphira just doesn't know how to act around him. Will her continuous advances push him away, or will they end up together, who knows. So as you can probably guess, my next chapter will be learning to fly, so I might try and put some comedy in there, as well as progressively add in more ExS into the story. Hope you enjoyed it, Please Review.**


	6. First Flight

Eragon: Forever

First Flight

**Sorry for the longer than usual delay, for me I updated on Sunday morning and now it's Friday afternoon, anyway hopefully after this chapter I should be updating on Mondays, and Fridays. This one has been tricky to write because I didn't know what to add as the dialogue, but hopefully I didn't screw it up. As always thanks to all of my reviewers and enjoy.**

It had been only one day since Eragon had been transformed into his draconic form, and already he had experienced everything in a new and more interesting way. His smell was something which had greatly improved, being able to smell everything around him, and somehow able to distinguish one smell from another, even at a great distance. His vision was also modified in his transformation, seeing blues and greens more vividly, with reds and oranges being dull. This morning, Saphira had promised to teach him how to fly, and he was feeling quite anxious at the thought of flying hundreds, if not thousands of feet in the air. _Ok Saphira, I'm ready to learn to fly, what's the first thing I need to learn. _

_Eragon, you first need to learn how to control your wings properly, last night you could barely pull them into your side, flying is something which requires more skill. _He winced, remembering how badly he did last night, and that was just learning to walk.

_Fine, so how do you suppose I learn to use my wings properly, Flap them on the spot, because that would just look stupid._

_Flapping on the spot is exactly how I think would be the best way to learn, that's how I learnt how to fly. Luckily you don't have to teach yourself like I did, so it shouldn't take too long. First you have to learn to flap your wings in unison, else you may find that you are falling out of control. Slowly flap your wings, like this. _Slowly she unfurled her wings and began to demonstrate the correct way to flap her wings. She did it so easily that he thought it couldn't be that difficult, but was soon to be proven wrong.

As he flapped his wings, he thought he had his wings flapping in harmony, _like this Saphira?, _He asked hopefully.

_No Eragon, You are flapping your left wing to fast, and your right too slow, try to flap them at the same speed. _As he tried to flap his wigs in sync with each other, they swapped around, with his right wing flapping too fast. They continued on like this for a while, until finally Saphira was happy with how he was doing.

_Now you have to launch up into the air, like so, _Demonstrating the action required, _and begin to flap your wings as you have been. _

As he launched off the ground, using his powerful hind legs to get the required height, he started to flap his wings like before. To his surprise, instead of gravity taking over like usual, he stayed airborne for well over 5 seconds. Slowly his left wing began to speed up, causing him to plummet to his left, smacking hard into the ground. _Saphira, I did it, I was flying._

_Very good Eragon, _She chuckled,_ but you need to keep your wings flapping together, else you will fall like that again, and next time you might be more than 10 feet off the ground._

He tried again, but this time kept airborne, and he kept his wings flapping in harmony, _now what Saphira, How do I move forward? _But as he said it, he felt himself lean forward, and instead off smacking face first into the ground, he actually moved_. _Once he could move forward, he found the rest came naturally to him, with his instincts taking over.

_Well done Eragon, now we can fly side by side, rather than you astride me as we always have, oh how I've dreamt of this moment. _As she spoke, she took to the air and flew to his side, still able to fly better than him by 10-fold. As she reached his side, she flew so that the tip of her left wing was only mere inches from his left.

They flew for well over an hour over Vroengard in silence, simply looking around the magnificent island they were on. He knew that they would leave for the mainland tomorrow, as he couldn't sustain his wards now that he was a dragon, meaning that if they stayed, the poison in the air would eventually kill them. Finally he broke the silence, _Wow, Saphira I didn't know flying was like this, I feel so free._

_I know Eragon, before now I have always been sworn to one duty or another, but flying has always felt so invigorating, even more so now that I can fly where and when I want. _She swooped under and around him so that she was now on his right, the way she flew awed him. When Saphira flew through the air, she seemed more beautiful than normal, more majestic. He knew he would eventually mate with her; it was the only way the dragon race would raise again. There was one thing however which bothered him however, when. Although he didn't mind that he and Saphira would be together, he had loved her since she hatched, but now he's a dragon, and it makes it all different somehow, more awkward.

_So when do you suppose we will be leaving Vroengard. I mean, I can fly well, but how much harder is it to fly over the sea. I would prefer to leave tomorrow if possible._

_Yes Eragon, I believe that if the weather is calm, you should have no problem flying back to the mainland. _She paused for a few minutes, meaning that they flew in silence for a short while before finally asking, _where do you suppose we will live when we get back? We can't exactly live in the cities like before._

_I don't know Saphira, maybe we could explore to the east of Alagaesia, and I don't think many people live there if any. It will be another adventure in our already lively existence._ He wondered what mysteries he and Saphira might find in the unexplored east, the creatures and places they will see.

_That sounds like a plan then, but it's a long flight there from here. I will be happy in the east as long as it's the two of us. _After that they flew on, again in silence, until it began to get dark, by which point they decided to land in a small clearing, somewhere in the north of the island.

888

_Eragon? _Saphira asked, _Are you happy that you became a Dragon? Or do you wish you stayed as a human?_ She waited for his response, which was taking him a while to think about.

Finally he responded to her, after over ten minutes of silence. _Saphira, of course I am glad that I became a Dragon, it means that I can be with you. But I keep on remembering all of the things I can't do because I'm not a human. I know that those close to me will understand about my transformation, but many people will hate me, thinking I thought humans inferior. I don't know, it may take some time to fully accept becoming a Dragon. I know that you want to start a family now, but I'm just not ready, I hope you understand that I still do love you._

_I understand Eragon; I love you, and wouldn't want to make you do something you aren't ready for. Now we should get some sleep, we have a long flight in the morning and you will need your strength._

She watched as Eragon drifted to sleep, and just lay besides him, watching over him. He was a magnificent dragon, and she couldn't help but realise just how lucky she was, having her Rider, the one person she loved, transformed into a dragon for her. Slowly she drifted off, joining him in slumber, softly lulled by the slow movements of his breathing. _Good night Eragon. _

888

As the first light of the morning came, she woke up, only to see that Eragon was still asleep, and from her link to his mind, she knew he would still be asleep for a good few hours yet. It was then that she had a great idea, she would go out hunting, and bring back Eragon his first meal as a dragon. She slowly crept up and away from where she and Eragon were just sleeping, and jumped high into the sky to search for some game on the island. Although she had no doubt that Eragon would be capable of hunting for his own food, she thought it was a nice gesture.

She soared high in the sky as to not alert any of her prey below of her presence, and started to circle around the island. It wasn't long, however until she found a small pack of dear, which she could easily pick off two of the stragglers as they were in the open. She focused her gaze onto one of the large bucks, and suddenly was swooping down, holding her claws out in front of her. Within seconds, she had grasped onto the animal, and snapped its neck, silencing it. Luckily, she hadn't alerted any of the other deer, so quickly snapped up a second, and began to make her way back to Eragon.

When she drew closer to where she had left him earlier that morning, she was relieved that he was still sleeping, so she could keep her surprise a secret. She knew that he 'was' a vegetarian, but that he had to eat meat as a dragon, and that he knew it. She softly brushed her mind against his own to wake him up, but it didn't work. She tried a second time, and when that failed to work, she had another idea to wake him up. She crept up to him slowly, until she was directly next to him, and the quickly, without hesitation, jumped into him, toppling him onto his side, with her on top.

_S-Saphira, what are you doing? _He said groggily, _I was sleeping._

_Well I wanted to wake you up for breakfast; I got us a nice pair of deer to eat, and considering it's been ages since you last ate meat, I thought you might like it. _When she told him about the deer, she motioned towards them with a swing of her head.

It took him a while to stand up after she had gotten off, but he finally said, _Thanks Saphira, I'm starving. _She watched as he slowly made his way to the smaller of the two deer, and started to carefully take small bite out of its warm flesh. She strode over next to him and started to take massive bites out of her own deer, showing him how dragons eat.

_Wow, I forgot how good meat tasted, but eating it raw sure tastes great, much better than just plain vegetables. _He said, slowly increasing the size of his bites as his instincts telling him to eat began to take over.

_Well Eragon, I thought that a good meal might give us some more strength on our way to our new home, wherever it may be._

_Yes, thank you. Saphira, would it be alright if we drop in at Uru'bean to tell the others of my transformation, _he said hesitantly, _it's just that I think they should know that the last rider is now a dragon, and also to tell my cousin._

_Of course that would be alright, _she said, as they both took the last bites out of their breakfast, _As long as we don't stay there for too long. _She didn't know why, but she wanted to get on with her new life with Eragon as quickly as possible. She also didn't want to go back into the cities, where everyone always complimented her, which had now gotten quite monotonous.

_Well Saphira, we should get going, we have a long flight ahead of us, and a new adventure waits at the other end._

**Ok, so not my longest chapter, but it's still a chapter at least. As I said at the top of the chapter, I will only be updating on Mondays and Fridays, well college is a lot more work than I expected. Oh well, I suppose 2 updates a week is better than none. Anyway, as always, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please tell me what you think, comments are always appreciated.**


	7. The Talk

Eragon: Forever

The Talk

**Well, I have to say, I am so sorry for the huge delay, I've not been able to get a break with homework and other school stuff, mixed with finding time to game with my mates or spend time with my family, but I promise, I will never take a month to update ever again. Along with that, I have had writers block with how to make the next 2 chapters not boring, but to keep them in the story. I want to thank LurkxReptile for reigniting my inspiration to continue writing with his comment. Anyway, here's the next chapter, and as always, please enjoy.**

_Eragon, hurry up, we have a long way to go, you can clean yourself when we stop later tonight. _Saphira scolded, getting quite board and was already to leave.

_But... Saphira... It's really... Annoying. _He said between licking his scales clean of blood spatters from his breakfast earlier that morning. Saphira had managed to make less of a mess then he had, and had finished cleaning herself long before he even finished eating.

She slowly moved closer to him, _it's not that difficult, it doesn't take me ten minutes to clean myself, here let me help. _Before he could respond, or even understand what she could have meant by help, she began to lick his scales clean.

He blinked out of confusion, and it took him a few seconds to realise what was going on. When he finally realised that the sapphire dragon has decided to take cleaning him into her own hands, which made him pull away in embarrassment. He was still adjusting to life as a dragon, and felt slightly awkward around Saphira at times.

_Stop squirming and it will be finished quicker. _She said as she moved towards him to continue licking his dark blue scales clean, to which he jumped back to avoid her.

_Saphira stop it, I don't need you to clean me as if I'm your hatchling. _He sighed, realising there was no use in trying to argue with her, and gave into his humiliating bath.

She had finally finished licking him clean, which only took about a minute or two, which meant that they were finally able to set off back to the mainland. _Are you ready 'Little One'. _She mocked as she took off into the air.

_Fine, But next time I have a meal, you aren't allowed anywhere near me until I've finished cleaning myself. _

_Agreed, as long as next time you eat your meal without making a mess everywhere._

He took off and quickly took position next to Saphira, ready for his first proper journey as a dragon. He looked over to her, only to see a toothy grin on her face. _What are you so happy about..._

_Nothing. _She replied, perhaps a little too quickly. He didn't quite believe her, as after she answered, she looked away from him.

_Please Saphira, tell me what you're smiling at. _She didn't respond, but he could have a good guess at what it was that was making her so happy. He didn't mind her silence anyway, he knew she would tell him sooner or later.

888

On their flight, they talked about a lot of things, such as where they might live once they got back, or Eragon asked questions about the art of flying, to which Saphira showed him how to do a few different aerial manoeuvres and tricks, many of which Eragon couldn't even attempt to do yet.

However, for a long while, both Saphira and Eragon were quiet towards the end of their journey, and just as the mainland came into view, she had a question which she couldn't hold in any longer. _Eragon?_

_Yeah Saphira_

_How do you feel about being... Like this?_ She asked

_You mean being a Dragon? _He answered, slightly confused at her vague question.

_No... Well Yes... But I mean about... Us? _She finally managed to say, feeling quite awkward, but glad she finally managed to ask the question which has been on her mind for the past couple of days.

_Erm, well... I know that I... that I have strong feelings for you. I don't know, why'd you ask? How do you feel about us? _He replied, unsure of what he should say, or even how he truly felt. He knew he wanted to be with her, but was afraid to 'Take the plunge' so to say.

There was a long pause, until she finally replied. _You know how I feel, I love you Eragon but I want you to be happy as well, and if you aren't ready, well then..._

_Saphira-. _He exclaimed, eyes wide at what he saw in front of them.

_...I can wait. _She finished, only then realising Eragon had said something else, she looked at him, and saw what looked like amazement and a hint of fear in his eyes. He gave a low growl at whatever it was he could see. _What is it._

_Look over there. _She turned to see what he was on about, only to see a blaze flying through the sky. By now it was getting dark, which made the torrent of colours in the flame even more of a spectacle to see.

_Is that the-_

_Phoenix._ They both finished, as they saw the magnificent bird flying towards them. The Phoenix was larger than they first expected after first seeing it on their way to Vroengard, being only slightly smaller than they were. They then noticed that the bird was picking up speed, and was now only fifty or so meters away from them.

CRASH, as the mighty bird crashed into Saphira, and began to claw and peck at her in mid flight. Saphira released a torrent of flame over the Phoenix, which seemed to have little to no effect at all.

She realised she was going to have to use brute force to batter the phoenix off, however the mighty bird had begun to force Saphira down onto the beach they were passing over. The phoenix was strong, and there was nothing she could do to get it off. She was trapped.

Eragon had started in pursuit of them, but the phoenix was much quicker by far, and had already reached the land, and had Saphira pinned down. He flew as fast as his wings would allow him, drawing closer and closer. SLAM. He hit the phoenix in its side, and with his greater size and weight managed to free Saphira of the beast's grip.

The Giant bird however, was much stronger than he anticipated, and managed to use its talons to cause an oozing wound on his side. He winced in pain, but managed to bat the phoenix off, giving Saphira time to attack from behind, and lock her jaw onto its neck.

_Please, Stop. _A melodic voice rang through his and Saphiras minds. It took him a few second to realise that the voice was coming from the Phoenix, which he now guessed was a female.

_Who are you? Why did you attack Saphira like that? _He asked in a low tone, growling to show his anger at the bird.

_I am Azura, Last of the Phoenix's thanks to your race. _She spat out at them. _It was a red dragon and his human who killed my mate, so I vowed that I would have my vengeance, for all of my species, starting with the dragon race._

_But why? _Saphira asked._ What have WE ever done to you, we didn't even know your race existed until a few days ago, and you go blaming us for what happened to your race. _Her voice still showed the anger she felt for Azura however she felt sympathy for the phoenix. Up until a few days ago, other than Thorn, who she now knows is dead, she too was the last sane member of her kind.

_Because the Phoenix's and the Dragons have always been at war. My ancestors were slaughtered by yours. _She paused for a long time, thinking everything over until she gave out a mental sigh. _It's my duty to fulfil my races purpose, and destroy the last of the dragon race. _And with that last statement, she burst into flame, and all that was left behind was a pile of ash.

Eragon and Saphira thought little of the pile of ash, assuming that was what happened when Phoenix's died, and so decided to continue inland in the closing hours of the day. It wasn't long before they touched down in a clearing in the trees, and as Saphira went off to hunt, Eragon stayed back, exhausted over the day's events.

Being alone gave him time to think, and he thought about a lot of things, but one thing was always on his mind. Saphira. He thought about them, together, however now it didn't seem so strange. Perhaps it was the thought of losing her which scared him, when Azura attacked her, he feared for her life more than his own. He also thought of Azura's threat to destroy the dragon race. Maybe she wasn't dead, or maybe she was, he didn't want to risk putting his guard down either way.

888

Somewhere to the west, a group of Humans were making their way north to find a new place to start a village, after their homes were destroyed in the war. "Galdor, you have to see this."Shouted one of the scouts ahead of the group. Galdor ran as quickly as he could to where his scout was shouting from.

"What is it Tathar-"He said, silenced by his amazement at what he saw in front of them. It looked like what seemed to be an egg, surrounded by a pile of ash, except this egg was slightly gigantic, being at least a foot in length. "What do you suppose it is?"

Tathar just shrugged, "Looks like an egg, but it's huge" He picked up the smooth golden egg, and felt it move slightly. He quickly put it into his pack and the two of them set off back to the main group.

"Tathar, I wonder how it got there, and where all of that ash came from" Galdor said, "But until we find out, I think we should keep it a secret from the others, in case they want to steal it from us.

"Agreed, I reckon it would be worth quite a bit to the right buyer, and even so, it might hatch into something. I heard dragons came from eggs." Tathar replied, Hopeful that they might have a dragon of their own some day. His head was filling with thoughts of what it might be like to have a dragon of his own.

"Don't get your hopes up; it might just a golden stone. Even if it is an egg, why would it hatch for us?" Galdor Argued, trying to put a stop to Tathars fantasy before it got out of hand like it always did. Tathar was only 17, and still acted like a child sometimes, but he was like a son to him. Tathars parents died when he was only 8, so Galdor took him in as the child he never had, and raised him as his own.

Tathar ignored his adopted father's response, and knew that this 'egg' was something special, and would someday lead him to adventure. "I know you're something important" he muttered to the egg, which seemed to be giving off a faint glow.

"We'd best hurry up, night is fast approaching, and we don't want to be left out in the dark" Galdor advised, "Supper will be ready soon, and we all know how grouchy you get when you're hungry" He chuckled the last part out, knowing full well it was the truth.

As they drew closer to the temporary encampment, they saw the lights of the campfires dotted around. Overall there was about 30 people who departed from their small village north of Teirm, however their numbers grew once people got word, and now there was over 60 villagers travelling north with them. Galdor was the leader of the group, as it was his idea to move north into the spine, which meant that Tathar was expected to help lead everyone. However he just wanted to be normal, and not to be treated any better than the others just because he was raised by Galdor.

"Tathar, I'm glad to see you got back in time for supper. Don't want you to go hungry eh" Bellowed Fegnus, who was the blacksmiths son, Fegnus was Tathars closest friend, and they had known each other since they were children.

"Aye, we wouldn't want that would we" He chuckled back. "Hey Fegnus, I've got something to show you later on, come over to my tent tomorrow before we leave", he said in a more hushed tone, not wanting Galdor to overhear.

888

Saphira finally came into Eragons view, over an hour later, which he was glad of because he was getting quite hungry, and most of all bored. They were about half way back to Uru'bean, which meant if they set off early enough they would be back before tomorrow night. Hopefully.

_Finally, your back, what took you so long? _Eragon teased, knowing she would usually get a good meal in about 5 or 10 minutes.

_Well maybe if I didn't have to hunt for you, and you got your own food, it wouldn't take so long. _She replied back, perhaps a little too harshly.

_Sorry, maybe I'll help you hunt next time, how hard could it be. _He timidly replied, slowly edging closer to her, hoping he'll still get his meal, which luckily Saphira wasn't too angry and gave him a small, although greatly appreciated deer.

They both tucked into their meals, and like last time they ate, Eragon made a huge mess of his scales, meaning once they had finished eating, he had to clean his scales, again. This time however they weren't in any hurry, so Saphira didn't help, which he was glad about. Although part of him enjoyed the closeness of it, it still made him feel awkward.

_Saphira, I've been thinking._

_What about._ She replied.

_About earlier on, when we were talking about... Us. Well, when you were attacked by the phoenix, I didn't know what I would do if you... if you. _He stuttered over the last words, almost as if saying them might come true.

_If I what? _She coaxed, trying to get whatever he was trying to say out of him.

_If you. _He repeated. _Died. It's made me realise just how much I... how much I care about you, and how I don't want to lose you._

_What are you trying to say Eragon? That you're ready? _She asked, confused at his sudden change of heart.

_No... Erm well... I suppose. I guess what I mean is that I erm... I want to be with you, and we can work our way up to... well that. _He fumbled around his words, feeling embarrassed at sharing how he feels with Saphira, mainly because they're about her.

_Eragon, you have no idea how happy this makes me. _She excitedly cried out to his mind. _Of course I would be thrilled to... Well be with you. _It may not be mating, but it's a start I suppose, she thought to herself.

By then it was almost the middle of the night, so Saphira decided that it would be best to get some sleep before their long flight the next day. She slowly curled up on the ground, and was about to fall straight to sleep, When she was suddenly surprised by something brushing up against her back. She reached her head up to see what it was, and was even more shocked to see Eragon curled up around her.

He gave her a sheepish grin (or as sheepish as a dragon can grin) and simply said. _Its cold and I though sleeping next to each other might keep us warm. _

She wrapped her tail around his, ecstatic at his sudden outburst of affection. _Good night Eragon. _She whispered in his mind, as he draped one of his wings over her back, and she slowly drifted off into a deep slumber.

_Good night Saphira._

**Well what do you think? It's been a month so it might not be as good as my other chapters, I also took some of the advice from my reviews, so I hope you enjoyed it. As you can tell, Azura (the phoenix) won't be a major character in the story yet, and for now I will focus most of the book on Eragon and Saphira, but Galdor and Tathar will crop up here and there. Anyway please review, I will try to get the next chapter up sooner than this one was. Thanks for reading.**


	8. Ilirea

Eragon: Forever

Ilirea

**As you can guess from the title, Uru'bean has been renamed as it was at the end of Inheritance. I know that this happened in the book, and is sort of copying, but I saw it as something sentimental and wanted to use it in my fic. Anyway, as I promised last chapter, I wouldn't leave you waiting for a month (or at least you who are still reading) so here it is. As always, enjoy.**

Eragon woke up earlier than he usually did this morning, despite staying awake until the latest hours of the previous night. He slowly opened his eyes, not having to adjust to the bright world of the waking due to the early hours. The sun had only began to creep up, and cast long shadows of everything it touched, leaving elongated shadows of everything it touched upon the ground.

He decided that he would stay where he was, or at least until Saphira woke up as not to disturb her, knowing that she was probably more tired than he was after their encounter with the Phoenix last night.

As he lay there, he started thinking about the past few days and how just a few years ago he was just a simple farm boy, and to him Dragons were only a myth, stories fabricated and passed on by story tellers. And how back then he would never have expected that he would ever see a Dragon, never mind actually become one, and thought how lucky he was. But what made him even happier was being with Saphira. Ever since she hatched for him, he felt something for Saphira. Perhaps it was just the mental link they shared, however he liked to think otherwise.

About half an hour later, Saphira awoke; not wanting to move and being content just to lay there next to Eragon, but knew eventually they would have to get up at some point.

_Good morning Saphira. Sleep well? _Eragon asked through their bond, so quiet it was almost like a whisper. Although Eragon had become a Dragon, so technically wasn't a Rider any more, the bond they shared as Dragon and Rider still remained.

_Yes, I slept wonderfully Thank you_. She replied, only then noticing Eragon eyes were locked on her, looking almost mesmerized. _Eragon-?_

_What- Yes Saphira?_ He said, taking a few seconds to react, only then noticing that he was staring at her. _Oh. Sorry. _He said sheepishly.

_It's alright Eragon. _She chuckled, internally blushing at having Eragon Fixated on her like that. She didn't get that sort of attention, being the last Dragon up until a few days ago, and with it being Eragon giving her that attention was just a bonus.

They stayed there in silence for ten minutes or so, until Eragon thought it would be best if they set off, just to make sure they made it to Uru'bean today. So begrudgingly they both got up, stretching their wings out getting ready to take off. Slowly they both made their way so their take off wasn't obstructed by the trees above them, and took off into the air in the direction of the capitol.

Today, however was a much less uneventful day than yesterday, and He and Saphira spent most of their time talking.

Well, most of his time was spent listening to Saphira lecture him on how to act now that he was a Dragon. He was only really half listening, thinking about how he would break the news of his 'Transformation' to the others, not knowing if they would understand. One main thing which bothered him was that he wanted to be a good uncle to Roran's daughter, but wasn't so sure how he would be able to considering his new form.

_Eragon, are you even listening to me? _Saphira snapped, maybe a little harshly, pulling him out of his thoughts and back into reality.

_Erm- Yes, Of course I am. _He replied, hoping she wouldn't pursue his slight ignorance by asking questions.

_OK then, what do you think about it then? _She asked him, with a hint of smugness in her voice at catching him out.

*Crap* He thought to himself, having absolutely no idea what she was on about, he only saw one option (well two if you count no) _Yes. _He plainly replied, metaphorically crossing his fingers it was the right answer.

_You have completely what you just agreed to do you? _She asked, already knowing his answer, but just wanting for him to admit it.

_Yes, you were asking if- if-. _He left it there and after a long time searching his brain for a possible answer, finally admitted defeat. _No, I'm sorry Saphira, what was it you were saying again? _He said, expecting her to tell him off for being ignorant, especially considering how much she enjoyed attention.

_Well what I was asking was if you wanted to go for a swim before we got there. _She answered him, surprisingly calm, so much that it threw him off slightly. This was the 'important' question he had been told off for because he wasn't listening. _So would you? _She asked again, this time with him listening.

_S- Sure, that sounds fun. _He replied, blinking, still dazed by her lack of reaction. He silently thought to himself, sighing *Women, It's like we're not meant to understand them*. _Where though?_ He asked her, having not seen a body of water large enough for them since the ocean.

_Don't worry, I know a place. _Just then as if on cue, on the horizon, the end of the 'Rio River' could be seen, with the city of Uru'bean in the background. _See._

Eragon was focused on the river, deciding that going for a swim might be a good idea, considering it was only early afternoon and they were so close to Uru'bean. It only took them a few minutes the short distance to the river, and he was too busy focusing on the Slow flow of the water, which was almost a trickle to notice that Saphira had disappeared somewhere behind him.

SMASH. She playfully swooped into his back, grasping onto his wings with her front claws. As soon as she grabbed onto him, he was unable to move his wings, and with the added weight they both started to plummet down towards the water.

_SAPHIRA, what are...? _He managed to utter before the sock of the freezing cold water caused him to lose all sense of thought.

_What? I'm just playing Eragon. _A smug Saphira innocently teased, who had let go at the last minute, leaving her almost completely dry, other than from the few droplets caused by the tremendous splash He had created.

_OH, you're in for it now Saphira._ He muttered to her, and quickly took off in pursuit of her.

_You'll have to catch me first_. She teased again. He knew she wanted to be caught, he could feel it across their connection, but he knew that she wouldn't make it easy for him anyway. She flew off in the opposite direction, not having to put much effort into outrunning Eragon. _You'll have to do better than that to catch me. _She tormented him further.

_Oh, you're in for it now. _He mumbled, obviously provoked into speeding up by her consistent goading. Somehow he was managing to catch up to the sapphire dragoness, and by some stroke of luck, managed to grab onto her tail with his fore-claws.

Suddenly she doubled back on herself in a futile attempt to shake him off, however by some miracle, he managed to hold on. Saphira conceded defeat, so decided that if she was going down, she would take him down with her. She angled herself down towards the River, and together they both dove into the clear water together in a tangle of limbs and wings.

They resurfaced from underwater at around the same time, laughter shared between them across their link to each other. _Told you I could get you. _Eragon chuckled. _Maybe you're not as fast as I thought you were._ He continued, knowing she had let him catch her.

_Oh come on Eragon, I went easy on you. _She sniggered as if to say 'don't get too full of yourself'. _Still, if I were a deer, I wouldn't stand a chance. _She complemented, looking forward to a time when they could go hunting together.

They spent the next hour or so playing around in the water, doing somersaults and other tricks. They also had a couple of races from one side of the river to the other, most of which Saphira won, much to Eragons displeasure. He didn't care about Saphira winning too much; all he cared about was how happy they were right now. After he and Saphira had been dragged into the war, there had been very few times they could spend together, not worrying about the war that is. Even before the war there had only been the occasional times He had been truly content with how things were, well until Saphira had hatched for him over a year ago, which is one of the, if not the happiest day of his life.

After they had finished swimming, they decided to relax in the shallows for a while, where Saphira wanted to preen herself, after not having time to really do so in a few months. Eragon still shone having only being a Dragon for a few Days, meaning that all the dust on his scales washed off in the gentle current of the River.

He lied there in silence, lulled to sleep by the slow movements of the river, waiting for Saphira to finish cleaning herself so they could take off.

It was mid-afternoon by the time she had finished, by which time Eragon had fallen to sleep. She decided that she would only gently wake him up, knowing that he was only lightly sleeping and that there was no point in startling him. _Eragon, wake up, it's time to go._

_Huh- what- oh, hi. How long was I sleeping? _He asked, not actually remembering falling to sleep.

_Don't worry; you were only asleep for a couple of minutes. _She said smiling at how peaceful he looked whilst sleeping. _Well we had best get going. We've spent enough time relaxing._

_Ok, I was having the most Amazing dream. I think you were in it, but I can't remember much else. _He said whilst stretching out, looking slightly like a cat would, arching his back.

She only gave a low hum in reply, which showed exactly how much she loved him. She moved towards him, and gently nuzzled his neck, and for the first time Eragon didn't shy away from her 'kisses' but instead returned the affectionate act. After a few seconds they pulled away, and for a second were just gazing into each other's eyes, before turning to fly the rest of the way to Uru'bean.

The rest of short distance was spent in a blissful silence, a silence were they didn't need any words to communicate how they feel with each other. Their minds were completely open to each other, sharing their every thought and emotion with each other. Eragon had never felt this level of intimacy before, not even with Saphira, and although part of him was frightened, it felt right somehow. That was until they were a few hundred meters away from the capitol, flying high up so that people wouldn't see Eragon and think he was a threat.

Eragon decided it would be best to tell everyone he needed to about his change at the same time, so reached his mind out to Nasuada. _Nasuada._

_Eragon? Is that you? We expected you to be gone for a while longer, where are you? _She replied.

_It's a long story; if you can gather Roran and the others in the courtyard I will explain it to you there. I'll keep my mind open to yours so you can call me when everyone's ready. _She gave simply gave him an 'OK' in response, and was off to gather everyone requested.

Five minutes or so later, Nasuada finally replied, telling him that everyone was waiting for them, other than Arya and Orik, who unfortunately had returned to their respective homes.

_Well Saphira, this is it. _He anxiously said to Saphira, worrying slightly about how everyone would react to his new form.

_Eragon, remember, I'm here for you no matter what. _She replied reassuringly, abating his worries of what might or might not happen. They pressed on, and after a couple of minutes of flying were both lowering into the castle courtyard, all eyes suspiciously on Eragon.

"Saphira" Nasuada started, apprehensively, "Where is Eragon, and who is this other Dragon, I thought there was only you and Thorn left?"

Eragon stepped in to answer her questions. _Nasuada, don't be alarmed, This is me, Eragon. The-_

"No, that's not possible, Eragons a human, you couldn't possibly be him!" Roran butted in, not wanting to believe that his only living relative was a Dragon.

_Roran_. Eragon said, turning to his cousin. _I know that you don't want to believe it, but deep down you know it to be true. Roran, don't worry, we will still be brothers, no matter what species I am._

"B- But how? Why?" He stuttered, knowing that this Dragon in front of him was in fact his Cousin, who he had grown up with as if they were brothers. He turned to Katrina, who was stood silently besides him, who embraced her husband, trying to help him through this revelation of Eragons, as they whispered to each other.

He turned back to Nasuada, who then expanded upon Roran's questions. "Yes Eragon, Saphira, please tell us how this change happened, and why it happened?" She asked, intrigued at this strange new development.

Saphira started them off. _Well, you know that me and Eragon were summoned to Vroengard to enter the vault of souls_.And so she described what had happened on their way to the ancient stronghold of the riders. The Phoenix they saw in the sky, how Zar'roc appeared for Eragon, and of the battle which took place on Vroengard.

This was where Eragon took over. He told them about the prophecy of Anurin, and of the Rock of Kuthian, leaving out the part about their true names. Then they finally explained about the Eldunarya they found in the vault of souls. _In this vault of souls was where we found many of the Eldunarya of the old order of Riders, much like Glaedr, who decided to stay behind, to be with his old companions. He should be able to still communicate with us as the vault of souls contains a crystal which allows him to stretch his mind across Alagaesia._ He paused, allowing Roran, Nasuada and Katrina to take the information in, continuing after a few seconds. _We then were told by the Eldunarya about the future of the Dragon race, and how Saphira is the last Dragon in Alagaesia. They then-. _Just before he continued, he saw a look of dread in Nasuada's eyes, and paused to give her a minute, knowing why she looked so upset.

A single tear welled in her eyes, knowing that if Saphira was the last Dragon, that something had happened to Thorn, and perhaps even Murtagh. "Does that mean...?" was all she could ask, not wanting to finish her question, as if saying it will make it true.

Eragon knew the end of that Question, which in turn brought him back to how he felt when he found Zar'roc, and how he felt thinking his half-brother may have died. _Nasuada, Yes, we do believe that Thorn was killed, however it doesn't mean that Murtagh is dead._

She wanted to believe them, to know that Murtagh was still alive out there, but it still didn't alleviate the fear of his death. "I thank you Eragon for your words of comfort, however I would rather accept the truth rather than cling onto a false hope" She let one tear drop, and felt as it rolled down her cheek, eventually to drip off of the bottom of her chin. Trying to get past her worries, she gestured for him to continue.

He nodded in recognition that she wanted to leave the current matter for a later time. _Erm, Yes. The Eldunarya then told us that they had found ancient magic in their years of meditation. One piece of ancient magic reviled the secrets of the mind, body and soul, and how the three could be changed into different forms. This was the very magic they used on me, changing me into this form so that together, me and Saphira can one day bring back the Dragon race. _This was where he decided to finish, not thinking the events afterwards being of any importance, not to the others at least.

"Well, Eragon, Saphira, this does leave us in a predicament. Even though the war is over the Riders would help us in solidifying control and raising the moral of the nation. Between you being a Dragon, and Thorn being... Being Dead" She said, shuddering at the thought of Murtagh's Dragon being dead. "It leaves us without any complete Dragon and Rider pair to train the next Generation of Riders"

_Nasuada, There will be no new Generation of Riders. Me and Saphira are leaving Alagaesia, and heading to the east..._

"What, you're leaving Alagaesia? When? Why? You can't leave us behind like this; we haven't been able to spend any time with you without this... This war interrupting, and now it's over you say that you're leaving" Roran Interrupted, still shaken from Eragons first revelation, and now this. No he didn't want to accept that he would never see is cousin again, stormed off into the castle, throwing his arms into the air and cursing beneath his breath.

Katrina finally spoke up after being quiet for so long, still not used to talking to a Dragon. "Eragon, I'll talk to him, come see us in about an hour" She said, curtseying, and quickly taking her leave, chasing after her Husband.

After a minute, Nasuada spoke up, breaking the awkward silence. "Well Eragon, you have given me a lot to think about. I shall discuss this with Jormunder and we'll speak more of this later. How long do the two of you plan to stay in Ilirea?" she asked, knowing she couldn't persuade them not to leave Alagaesia, so should just accept it.

_Ilirea?_ Eragon asked.

"Oh yes, we forgot to tell you, we have renamed the city back to its original name. We found it to be fitting"

_Yes, it does seem fitting. _Saphira replied. _And in answer to your previous question, we plan to stay for a few of days, no longer than a week. _Although she wanted to depart to the east as early as possible, she knew Eragon would want to patch things up with his cousin, so decided it best to stay an extra day or so.

"Very well, in any case the two of you can stay in your room in the west wing of the castle, I Trust it should be big enough for the two of you" She said, and just before turning to leave added. "Also, I know that you want to set off east as early as possible, but I urge you to inform Arya and Orik yourselves" She finished, and quickly made her departure, leaving the two Dragons alone in the Courtyard.

_Well. _Saphira started. _We should probably get settled in our room._ She sighed, knowing they would end up staying in Ilirea for longer than she hoped, and that they would spend the next few weeks visiting the capitols of each of the races.

_Aye. _Was his only answer, obviously contemplating something as they made their way towards the west wing.

**Ok, so maybe not my best chapter, but at least it's my longest. (Ok so quantity doesn't beat quality) Anyway the main reason this chapter took a few days is because I literally wrote it over a few days. No I'm not extremely slow at typing, it's for 2 reasons mainly. The first reason is because I couldn't quite get the chapter to sound and feel right, I've rewritten most of this chapter a couple times. The second reason is because I've started speed cubing again, and have been trying to get quicker on my 5x5. So if you feel I should rewrite this chapter, please tell me and I will rewrite it, hopefully not getting distracted next time.**

**Anyway on a different matter, I need names. 4 human names, 1 male and 3 female, so if you have any ideas I would greatly appreciate it. As always, please review, thanks for reading.**


	9. New Developments

Eragon: Forever

New Developments

**Again, sorry for the huge wait (3 weeks I think), Anyway, I'm back, and hopefully I will have more frequent uploads, if life and school keep out of the way. Somewhere in this chapter I want to develop Tathar's story a little (or a lot, we'll see) Anyway, enough Talking, let's get on with the chapter. As always enjoy.**

They had been in Ilirea for just over an hour, when He heard a knock at his door. He reached out to the minds of his visitors', knowing it was most probably Roran and Katrina, but still wanted to make sure. As he expected, it was them, although he'd hoped that they would arrive later, wanting to think things over for longer.

_Come in, It's open. _He told them, looking over to Saphira, who gave him a comforting gaze in return, knowing that this was going to take a while.

The door on the inside of the west side of the room creaked open as Roran and Katrina entered, with Roran obviously still not entirely happy with what had happened.

"Eragon" Roran paused "There are things we need to ask of the two of you." He anxiously said, looking unsure of whether or not he should ask what he wanted to.

_Ok. _The two Dragons simply replied.

"We know that the two of you plan to go east before long" He stated, looking to Katrina, taking a deep breath in preparation to ask the question. "Well, we've been thinking..." He said, looking again to his wife. "And-"He started, his not quite knowing how to ask them what he wanted to ask.

_And what? _Eragon asked, trying to goad the question out of his cousin.

"And we've decide that, if it's alright with the two of you, we would like to come east with you. Me, Katrina, and Ismira." He finished, exhaling after finally getting his request out, not realising he had been holding his breath.

Eragon turned to Saphira, looking for a sign as to what she thought, and when she gave a slight nod of her head, that was sign enough to say, 'I don't mind either way'. Turning back to Roran and Katrina he asked. _I would be glad if you joined us, but is this really the best of ideas. Ismira's not even one yet, Is it really a good idea for her to travel by Dragon Back? That far into the unknown?_

Katrina stepped in to answer his questions. "Eragon..." She started, unaccustomed to talking to a dragon. "...We know the risks. But we want Ismira to grow up into a more peaceful life, away from Ilirea. We want her to grow up around her family, and that includes her uncle" She said, giving a slight smile to the dark blue Dragon, who was her cousin-in-law.

Roran Quickly added, "And besides, with two dragons who would protect her, what do we have to worry about" giving a much wider smile than his wife's, seemingly more used to the idea that his cousin, who was more a brother to him, was now a Dragon.

_Well it's settled then, you'll come east with us. _Saphira said, speaking up for the first time.

Roran looked from Eragon to the Sapphire Dragoness, and bowed his head, and added. "Thank you, we'll try not to be too much trouble"

At that Eragon quickly replied. _Of course you won't be any trouble, you're family_. To that Roran and Katrina gave a little chuckle, glad that they were welcome to join the Dragons.

After only a short silence, Roran finally decided to ask a question which had been on his mind for the past hour. "Eragon, I need to know something though" He said, not knowing how to continue without sounding like he was insinuating something.

Eragon simply nodded, signalling Roran to continue with his question.

"Well, since you got back, I've wanted to know. Why did you agree to become a Dragon?" He asked, more cautiously towards the end of the question, not wanting to anger his cousin by striking a nerve.

_Erm...Well..._. Was all he said in answer, not really needing words to answer he simply turned to look at Saphira, only to see her mesmerising sapphire eyes staring back at him. For a moment the two of them just gazed into each other's eyes, forgetting the other two in the room and across their link shared a wave of emotions with each other, lost in their thoughts.

After a few seconds they snapped out of their trancelike state, and remembering that Roran and Katrina were in the room, his face turning a deep shade of purple as heat seemed to flow to his cheeks.

Roran shifted, feeling as awkward as Eragon did, and looked to his wife, who just gave him that sort of stare which meant, 'Isn't it obvious', which made him feel slightly stupid for not seeing it.

The four of them suffered an awkward silence, before Katrina spoke up, "Well, we must get going, it's late and Ismira's will want feeding, what time do you plan on leaving"

_We hope to leave before midday tomorrow, and will be going south to Tonjheim, and then to Ellesméra. _Was Saphira's answer, glad that Eragon no longer had any excuse to stay in Ilirea now that Roran would be joining them.

"Well we had best get back to get packed" He said, heading for the door out of the room the two dragons shared. "We wouldn't want to disturb the two of you any longer" chuckling as he closed the door behind him, leaving Eragon slightly confused as to what his mocking laugh might have meant.

Tathar was crouched, scrutinising the dirt below his hands as if it might jump up at him any second now. The deer tracks they had been following for the past day and a half were getting harder to follow in the dense foliage which surrounded the group of friends. He and a few others had decided to trek ahead of the group, and into the forests of the spine.

In total there were five others with him, totalling at six, all varying between the ages of fourteen and seventeen, making him the oldest in the group. Because he was the oldest, the others up to him as a sort of leader, however he didn't like think of it that way. He preferred to just have fun, whilst he still could, and although he was technically a man grown, he still acted like a child sometimes.

"Tathar" He heard a gentle voice behind of him, taking his focus away from the deer tracks. "It's getting dark; you should join us over by the fire". He looked around to see the soft features of Erisia's face, her lips tilted upwards in a slight smile.

Smiling slightly in return, he replied "Yeah, you're probably right". He had known Erisia ever since he was 'Adopted' by Galdor, who happened to be her uncle. Although she was a year younger than him, they had always gotten along quite well, and in the nine years they had known each other, they had become close.

Together the two walked the short distance to where the others had set up camp. "What were you looking at back there?" She asked, turning slightly and looking up at him due to the significant height difference between the two.

"Erm... I was trying to see which way the deer we were hunting went" He replied, scratching the back of his head as he did. He didn't know why, but for the past few weeks, every time he was with Erisia, his felt like he had butterflies in his stomach. He decided to shrug off the feeling, and just continue as normal, but a small part of the feeling always remained.

"Sooo... you having any luck with the hunting then?" She asked in that sweet voice she always had when she asked a question like that.

"Well, no" He said, lowering his head down, showing his disappointment. "The tracks there are older than the last ones we saw, meaning the deer are getting further away from us"

"Ah well" she said, looking up at him with a comforting smile. "We're out here to have fun, not to hunt" She concluded.

"Yeah, I suppose" He mumbled, partly to her, and partly to himself.

As he finished saying that, the two were just entering the temporary camp. He looked over to Orison, who looked to him, hopeful that they were getting any closer to catching up with their prey. Tathar only shook his head, to which Orison sighed and moved up on the log he sat on. Erisia went and sat on the log opposite, and was soon lost in a conversation with Syllva.

"Not going well then?" Orison asked, knowing full well that the hunt was going badly, not that it really mattered. Orison was the youngest here, being only fourteen, but was quite mature for his age. He looked up to Tathar like an older brother, sometimes he even idolised him, which made it worse when Tathar screwed up.

"No, we keep falling further and further behind" He answered.

To that Orison just started going on about something, but Tathar wasn't listening. All he did was think about things. He looked into the small fire the group was gathered around, feeling the warmth on his face, and just lost himself in his thoughts.

Galdor had allowed him to come on this little adventure with his friends although reluctantly. He didn't know why Galdor worried about him so much, he was good with a bow, so could fend for himself, but his 'Adopted Father' couldn't understand it. It seemed like he wasn't allowed to have any fun and had to help Galdor out most of the time.

He knew that Galdor means well, but for some reason he just didn't get that everyone needs to have some fun sometimes, even for a little while. It was at times like this he would normally talk to Fegnus, but he had to help his father with his work, so stayed back with the main group. He got on well enough with the others, especially Erisia, but he never really confided in any of them.

He felt the log he was sitting on rock slightly, taking him out of his train of thought, and looked to his left to see Aryvenne sat next to him, who gave him a slight nod, to which he nodded in return. "You alright Tathar? You seemed, distant" she asked. Aryvenne was only fifteen, however sometimes acted much older. She was a very solemn girl, and only said few words.

"Yeah, I'm just thinking about things" He said, thinking back to a time when he was only nine, and Galdor had taught him how to use a bow.

"_Here you go Tathar" Galdor said, holding a bow and a quiver of arrows in his hand, outstretched to Tathar._

"_Wha- What's this for?" He asked, looking up to his new 'Father' with a look of delight in his eyes._

"_Well Tathar, I think you're old enough to learn how to use a bow properly, and I thought it would be best if you had one for yourself" His 'Father' told him. To that Tathar ran up to him, and hugged him._

"You wanna talk about it?" Aryvenne asked.

"Nah, it's nothing really" he said, revelling in one of the happiest memories he possessed, and felt a smile creep across his face, if only briefly. Deep down he knew that Galdor was a great 'Father' and that he was lucky to have him.

The rest of the night was spent talking with the others, joking and laughing, and it was one of the rare times Tathar was truly happy. Later that night, as it was getting close to midnight, He rolled out his mat next to the fire, and reached into his bag.

When his hand emerged from the bag, it was holding onto the large golden egg he had found only two days ago on the beach. It had never left his side since then, for he knew it was something special. He had kept it hidden away, until now. He watched as the orange glow reflected off the eggs smooth surface, causing it to ripple and dance as the light bounced off it. It was something which was truly amazing, and he marvelled at it, pondering on what it was.

"What's that?" He heard the deep voice of Darius say from next to him.

He jumped, slightly startled and turned to look at his friend. "I don't know, an egg I think" He replied. Darius, like Fegnus, had been one of Tathars friends since he was younger, and was only a couple of months younger than him. Unlike Fegnus, Darius was often very distant; however once he started talking, he could talk for ages.

"Well I don't know what sort of animal would hatch from an egg that big. It could be something dangerous" He said, his eyes lit up with curiosity, although mostly by the fire.

"Me neither, I know dragons hatch from eggs, but there's only one left, making this a mystery" He whispered, keeping his voice down, realising some of the others were already sleeping. Noticing this he gave out a yawn, and realised he himself was extremely tired, he added. "We should probably get some sleep"

"Yeah, I guess we'll find out what's in the egg soon enough" He whispered back, both of them laying back down after Tathar put the egg safely back into his sack.

After Roran and Katrina had left last night, not much had happened, and it wasn't long before Eragon and Saphira fell to sleep. The next morning Eragon woke up, and slowly lifted his eyelids. It was then that he felt something wasn't quite right, and it took him a moment to realise that the heat he normally felt from Saphiras bulk was missing, as well as the warm feeling he usually felt in his chest. He looked to his right were he was sure she fell asleep last night, which only confirmed that the Sapphire Dragoness was missing.

The part of his brain which belonged to his draconic instincts was now in panic, concocting all sorts of images of what might have happened to Saphira. Is it a servant of Galbatorix who survived, maybe a new, unseen enemy. It could have been something entirely different, but all his mind was telling him was that Saphira wasn't anywhere to be seen.

For the next minute or so, His brain racked over every possibility it could come up with, throwing him further into panic. Every other night since he had been a dragon, he had awakened, and always been a 'stones-throw' away from her.

After a minute, the part of his mind which was more rational became more dominant, and concluded that she was inside of the capitol, with ninety percent of the Varden's between her and anything which would mean her harm. He decided that she had probably gone hunting for breakfast, and would be back before long, and that it would be best for him to stay put.

He waited for Saphira for a couple of hours, so when he heard the distinct sound of Dragon wings beating through the air, immediately alerted him to Saphiras return. It was late morning by now, leaving them only a couple of hour before the departed for Tonjheim.

_Morning sleepy head, sleep well? _She asked him, as she finished her slow decent onto the balcony which protruded from the outside wall of their room.

_Yeah, thanks. Sleeping indoors is much more comfortable than outside, even if the view isn't as good. _He responded, to which he finished. _Where have you been? I've been waiting for hours for you to return. _He asked, feeling slightly stupid after noticing the two deer in her fore-paws, and the other dangling between her jaws.

Ignoring the stupidity of his question, she answered him proudly, puffing out her chest. _Getting Breakfast. _She answered, walking over to him and dropping the limp deer she held in her right paw before him.

Slightly surprised by her pride, mainly because she had been able to hunt amazingly for months now, although three deer was perhaps her record. He thanked her, and then asked with a slight mocking tone. _What took you so long anyway? You normally have no trouble hunting. _He said, sending a deep, draconic chuckle through their link.

_Normally it wouldn't take so long, but the Varden has either eaten all of the prey, or scared it off. Meaning that to get a decent meal, I had to fly a fair way. _She explained to him, the pride she felt a minute ago slightly diminished, although not too much.

_Anyway, thanks_. He said again, this time sending feelings of Caring and Gratitude to her across their bond, to which she responded with equally caring emotions. For a few seconds they were both lost in each other's thoughts, forgetting entirely about the meals which lay before them. Saphira giving a low hum, which was quickly reciprocated in turn by Eragon.

They were like that for a few seconds, neither of them moving, until they were snapped out of it by a loud rumble emanating from Saphira's stomach. Once he realised what was going on, Eragons face suddenly began to heat up as he quickly looked down at his paws. Saphira seemed to be in a similar state of awkwardness, leaving them both in a deafening silence.

They ate their breakfast without saying a word, neither one of them wanting to say anything which could further the awkwardness of the situation. Eragon finished eating before Saphira, mainly due to the fact that she had an extra deer to eat, so he set about to cleaning the blood spatters off of his face.

Saphira finished shortly after he did, so too also began to lick the blood off of her face. Unlike Eragon however, she had no problem in quickly cleaning herself, so sat on her haunches and waited for Eragon to finish.

She watched as he struggled to clean a small patch of blood off of the top of his nose, squinting one eye then the other to try and see it. She laughed at him across their mental link, to which he simply just glared at her. However after a few minutes of watching the helpless dragon, she grew bored, and eventually slightly annoyed.

_Here let me help. _She offered, or more of stated, quickly moving towards him to clean the patch of blood.

_Wha- _was all he said, before the sapphire dragoness was upon him, licking the top of his nose clean like a mother would to one of her hatchlings. Heat once again rushed to his face out of embarrassment, and he quickly pulled away, causing him to fall back into a sitting position. Luckily Saphira had managed to successfully clean him, so she wouldn't do that again.

She didn't get it, yesterday Eragon was fine with Saphira's advances on him, but today he began acting nervous around her again. She thought it might have been because yesterday Eragon was half asleep when they shared their moment, but she was still confused. _Ah well. _She thought to herself.

_We should probably get going to meet up with the others. _Eragon quickly stated, his gaze shifting between her and his feet.

_Yeah, let's go. _She responded.

At that the two dragons quickly moved to the balcony and set off to fly the short distance to the courtyard where they had planned to meet up with Roran and Katrina.

The two Dragons touched down in the castle courtyard a few minutes later, and saw that the others had already packed, and were ready waiting for them. Nasuada had issued a saddle be made for Eragon, meaning that Saphira wasn't the only one carrying everything.

Roran ran up to Eragon, "You ready?" he said, leaning with his palm on Eragons scaled shoulder.

_As always. _Eragon said cheerily. The four of them spoke of plans, ideas for the future as the Dragons were getting prepared for the journey.

As they were fitting the saddle on Eragon, he squirmed around slightly, not used to the straps and buckles, which caused him to feel uncomfortable. Once it was fitted and all of the straps were correctly tightened, he could barely notice its presence, so decided not to complain.

After Eragon had said their farewells to Nasuada and Angela, who had finally decided to show up again, they loaded all of the supplies Roran, Katrina and Ismira would need, and the three of them mounted the dragons. Katrina and Ismira were seated on Saphira, as she was a more experienced flyer than Eragon. Roran volunteered to ride Eragon, only to take the weight off of Saphira, although he trusted Eragon would be fine at flying.

After everyone was ready and mounted, the two Dragons took off in a southerly direction, beating their wings to get lift. As they powered away from Ilirea, Eragon thought to himself. _A few more days, and we will be off on our greatest adventure yet._

**Good, Bad, alright? I was going to include another part about Tathar at the end of this chapter, but I've decided to move that to next chapter. I would like to also thank everyone for all of the Great names, but especially the following.**

**Mellie: Erisia, Aryvenne and Orison. You have a real knack for coming up with suitable, and awesome names.**

**Legomaster7165: Darius. I love this name; It really suits the story well.**

**Tahnok4: Syllva. Awesome name, it was the first one which made my final list, Thanks.**

**Again, like last chapter it's been a while, so if it feels rushed in some parts (mainly the end) I can rewrite parts, I just didn't want to keep you all waiting for this chapter. From now on I promise to get 1 chapter up a every week or 2. Thanks for reading, please review.**


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